''Eumorpha vitis'', known as the vine sphinx, is a

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

of the family

Sphingidae The Sphingidae are a family of moths commonly called sphinx moths, also colloquially known as hawk moths, with many of their caterpillars known as hornworms. It includes about 1,450 species. It is best represented in the tropics, but species ar ...

Distribution

It lives from

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

north through

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

, the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

, and

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

to southern

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. Strays north to

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

Description

The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

is 85–105 mm. Eumorpha vitis vitis MHNT CUT 2010 0 336 Tingo Maria Peru male dorsal.jpg, Male dorsal Eumorpha vitis vitis MHNT CUT 2010 0 336 Tingo Maria Peru male ventral.jpg, Male ventral Eumorpha vitis vitis MHNT CUT 2010 0 336 St-Jean du Maroni Guyane Française female dorsal.jpg, Female dorsal Eumorpha vitis vitis MHNT CUT 2010 0 336 St-Jean du Maroni Guyane Française female ventral.jpg, Female ventral

Biology

Adults are on wing from April to May and again from July to October in Florida, from July to September in one generation in the northern part of the range and year-round in the tropics. They feed on the nectar of various flowers, including '' Vinca rosea''. The larvae feed on ''

Vitis ''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 81 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus consists of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, bot ...

'' species (including ''

Vitis vinifera ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, is a species of flowering plant, native to the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean region, Central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern ...

''), ''

Cissus ''Cissus'' is a genus of approximately 350 species of lianas (Woody plant, woody vines) in the grape family (Vitaceae). They have a cosmopolitan distribution, though the majority are to be found in the tropics. Decription Extrafloral nectaries ...

'' species (including '' Cissus incisa'', '' Cissus pseudosicyoides'', '' Cissus rhombifolia'', '' Cissus sicycoides'' and '' Cissus verticillata''), '' Ludwigia decurrens'', '' Ludwigia erecta'', '' Magnolia virginiana'' and ''

Parthenocissus ''Parthenocissus'' , is a genus of tendril vine, climbing plants in the grape family (biology), family, Vitaceae. It contains about 12 species native plant, native to the Himalaya, eastern Asia and North America. Several are grown for ornamental ...

'' species.

Subspecies

* ''Eumorpha vitis vitis'' (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, the Caribbean, southern United States) * ''Eumorpha vitis fuscatus'' - (Rothschild & Jordan, 1906) (St. Lucia, Guadeloupe and Martinique) * ''Eumorpha vitis hesperidum'' - (Kirby, 1880) (Jamaica) Eumorpha vitis fuscatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 365 St Claude Guadeloupe France male dorsal.jpg, ''Eumorpha vitis fuscatus''
Male dorsal Eumorpha vitis fuscatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 365 St Claude Guadeloupe France male ventral.jpg, ''Eumorpha vitis fuscatus''
Male ventral Eumorpha vitis fuscatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 365 Guadeloupe France female dorsal.jpg, ''Eumorpha vitis fuscatus''
Female dorsal Eumorpha vitis fuscatus MHNT CUT 2010 0 365 Guadeloupe France female ventral.jpg, ''Eumorpha vitis fuscatus''
Female ventral

References

External links

Vine Sphinx
Butterflies and Moths of North America Eumorpha Moths described in 1758 Sphingidae of South America Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Moths of Central America Moths of the Caribbean {{Philampelini-stub