great ash sphinx

(Sphinx chersis)

Hodges #

7802

Conservation Status
IUCN Red List

not listed

NatureServe

N4N5 - Apparently Secure to Secure

SNR - Unranked

Minnesota

not listed

 
great ash sphinx
Photo by Luciearl
 
Description

Great ash sphinx is a large, common and widespread, sphinx moth. It occurs in the United States in the northeast, in the Upper Midwest, in the arid southwest, and on the West Coast. It also occurs across southern Canada from Nova Scotia to Alberta.

In Minnesota, Great ash sphinx adults are active from June to August. They are found in dry deciduous and mixed forests, in fence rows, and in urban areas. They feed on the nectar of tubular, deep-throated flowers, including bouncing bet, dogbane, evening primrose, honeysuckle, and phlox. The caterpillars feed on the leaves of trees and shrubs. Their hosts include plants in the olive (Oleaceae) family, including ash, lilac, and privet. They have been raised on cherry and quaking aspen, but these are probably not significant food plants in the wild.

Great ash sphinx is the largest moth in the genus Sphinx. Adults are 2¾ (50 to 70 mm) in length and have a ½ to 5 (9 to 13 cm) wingspan. Moth size is sometimes given in terms of forewing length, which in this case is 3½ to 5 (9 to 13 cm).

The tongue is very long, longer than the body. The antennae are black and white.

The thorax is gray with a thin, black, longitudinal line on each side.

The abdomen is long and tapered. It is gray above in the middle, and there are alternating black and white bands on each side.

The forewing is very long, slender, and pointed, somewhat more pointed in the males than in the females. The outer margin is slightly concave. In northern populations, including in Minnesota, the forewings are dark gray with pale streaks. In southern populations, the forewings are pale bluish gray. There is a series of four long black dashes between the veins from the inner median area to the outer postmedial area. The outermost dash extends to the wing tip. There is also a small, diffuse, black blotch at the wing base. There is no discal spot. The subterminal line is a thin black line with pale outer edging. It is incomplete, ending well before the leading edge (costal margin). The other transverse lines are gray and diffuse, and they are also incomplete.

The hindwings are smaller, and they are egg shaped. They are light brownish gray with two broad, black, diffuse bands. The fringe on the hindwing has alternating black and white bands, like a checkerboard.

The mature caterpillar is large, up to 4 (10 cm) long. It may be light green, whitish green, pale bluish green, or pinkish. Thje abdomen is sometimes waxy whitish green on the upper half, lime green below. There are seven oblique, white stripes on each side of the body. The stripes sometimes are bordered with dark pink above, with the pink border expanding into a triangle on the lower half. The breathing pores (spiracles) are elongated, with a central black area surrounded by a white border. A long, straight, horn extends at a 45° angle from the eighth abdominal segment. The horn may be green or pink. The head has a pair of yellow vertical stripes that meet at the top. Mature caterpillars are seen from May to November.

 

Size

Total length: 2 to 2¾ (50 to 70 mm)

Wingspan: 3½ to 5 (9 to 13 cm)

Forewing length: 2 to 2¼ (50 to 57 mm)

 

Similar Species

 
Habitat

 

Biology

Season

One generation per year in Minnesota: June to August

Two generations per year in the middle states

 

Behavior

 

 

Life Cycle

Pupae overwinter in the soil.

 

Larva Food

 

 

Adult Food

 

Distribution

Distribution Map

 

Sources

4, 21, 24, 29, 30, 75, 82, 83.

12/13/2024    
     

Some lepidopterists think that the range of this species is “suspicious”. It has become rare to absent in the southeast. Specimens in the arid southwest “tend” to be smaller and their caterpillars “seem” to be different. The southwestern populations may be separated as a distinct species in the future, but DNA data is not currently available.

     

Occurrence

 

Taxonomy

Order

Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths)

Superfamily

Bombycoidea (hawk, sphinx, silk, emperor, and allied moths)

Family

Sphingidae (sphinx moths)

Subfamily

Sphinginae (large sphinx moths)

Tribe

Sphingini

Subtribe

Sphingina

Genus

Sphinx

   

Subordinate Taxa

great ash sphinx (Sphinx chersis ssp. chersis)

great ash sphinx (Sphinx chersis ssp. mexicanus)

   

Synonyms

Lethia chersis

Sphinx cinerea

Sphinx oreodaphne

Sphinx pallescens

   

Common Names

chersis sphinx

great ash sphinx

great ash sphinx moth

pennant marked sphinx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary

Costal margin

The leading edge of the forewing of insects.

 

Spiracle

A small opening on the surface of an insect or arachnid through which it breathes.

 

 

 

 

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Luciearl

great ash sphinx

Found near shore in sand and pine needles

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Other Videos

Sphinx chersis
Farm Geography

About

Aug 15, 2023

Sphinx chersis
Daniel Gee

About

Aug 3, 2023

great ash sphinx moth caterpillar
The Mothologist

About

Aug 22, 2019

 

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Luciearl
9/3/2024

Location: Lake Shore, MN

Found near shore in sand and pine needles

great ash sphinx
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Created: 12/14/2024

Last Updated:

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