''Proserpinus terlooi'', the Terloo sphinx moth, is a

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of ...

of the family

Sphingidae The Sphingidae are a family of moths ( Lepidoptera) 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, ...

first described by Henry Edwards in 1875. It is found from southern

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into 72 municipalities; the ...

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

. The

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

is 42–48 mm. There is one generation per year with adults on wing in July and August. Adults fly during the very late afternoon or evening, nectaring from flowers. The larvae feed on ''

Boerhavia ''Boerhavia'' is a genus of over 100 species in the Nyctaginaceae family. The genus was named for Herman Boerhaave, a Dutch botanist, and the genus name is frequently misspelled "''Boerhaavia''". Common names include spiderlings and hogweeds. ...

'' species (including ''

Boerhavia coccinea ''Boerhavia coccinea'' is a species of flowering plant in the four o'clock family which is known by many common names, including scarlet spiderling, red boerhavia, and in Spanish, ''hierba del cancer'' and ''hierba de la hormiga''. This is a wi ...

'' and ''

Boerhavia coulteri ''Boerhavia coulteri'' is a species of flowering plant in the four o'clock family known by the common name Coulter's spiderling. It is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, particularly the desert areas. This is an annual ...

'').

References

Macroglossini Moths described in 1875 Taxa named by Henry Edwards Moths of North America {{Macroglossini-stub