Syssphinx hubbardi
SIS-sfinkzmmHUB-berd-eye
Dyar, 1903

Photo (female) courtesy of Leroy Simon.

This site has been created by Bill Oehlke at oehlkew@islandtelecom.com
Comments, suggestions and/or additional information are welcomed by Bill.

TAXONOMY: Superfamily: Bombycoidea, Latreille, 1802 Family: Saturniidae, Boisduval, [1837] 1834 Subfamily: Ceratocampinae, Harris, 1841 was Syssphinginae: Packard, 1905 Genus: Syssphinx, Hubner [1819] 1816

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DISTRIBUTION:

The Syssphinx hubbardi moth (wingspan: males: 44-61mm; females: 58-74) ranges sporadically in
southern New Mexico: Grant, Hildago, Luna, Eddy, Dona Ana, Otero (confirmed by Bob Barber) and probably Leah and
Arizona: Mohave, Yavapai, Coconino, Gila, Maricopa, Penal, Pima, Cochise, Santa Cruz;
eastward to mid Texas: Culberson, Jeff Davis, Presidio, Brewster, Terrell, Val Verde, Kimble, Brown, Erath, and probably Ward and Winkler and other surrounding counties.

There are also populations in the mountain ranges of
California: northeastern San Bernardino County. The species is more abundant in
Mexico: Cohahuila, Sonora, Sinaloa, San Luis Potasi and Guadalcazar, and in many taxonomies is listed as Sphingicampa hubbardi.

The forewing is a darker, almost slate grey colour as compared to heiligbrodti.

Syssphinx hubbardi male, Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Culberson County, Texas,
August 24, 1995, courtesy/copyright of Charles Bordelon and Ed Knudson.

FLIGHT TIMES AND PREFERRED FOOD PLANTS:

Sphingicampa hubbardi moths are on the wing from June until September with most adults on the wing from late July throughout August. In Texas specimens have been taken at lights in November suggesting multiple broods. Larvae feed on Wright's acacia, honey mesquite and catclaw acacia.

Syssphinx hubbardi male, Arizona, copyright protected, courtesy of Leroy Simon.

Syssphinx hubbardi, Arizona, copyright protected, courtesy of Leroy Simon.

ECLOSION, SCENTING AND MATING:

These moths tend to eclose in the early evening with scenting and mating occuring the same night between 11:00 pm and 2:00 am.

The species mates readily in captivity, even in small cages, and the pair remains coupled until the following evening. The medial line on the dorsal hindwing is faint in the male (right), while in the female it is non-existent.

EGGS, LARVAE AND PUPAE:

Syssphinx hubbardi, third instar, courtesy of Adam Fleishman.

Females deposit light green eggs either singly or in pairs on hostplant foliage. Warm weather results in a very short incubation time of five days. Some larvae mature (55 mm) in under three weeks while others from the same batch progress much less rapidly. Photo courtesy of Leroy Simon.

Larvae seem relatively disease free and this is an easy species to rear in captivity even on cut food. In captivity, larvae accept honey locust, black locust and sweet acacia. Pupation is in shallow chambers under the soil. Reared pupae should not be subjected to freezing temperatures. S. hubbardi, from Catalina foothills, Tucson AZ, on foothill paloverde (Parkinsonia microphylla) in November, courtesy of David Bygott who writes, "I was struck by its similarity to the Gynanisa larvae I'm more familiar with, same silver spines yet a very different moth." David has spent some time in Tanzania. The light coloured scoli break the green abdominal segments at almost the same distance as there is between leaflets, offering excellent camouflage against any predator looking skyward from below.

Syssphinx hubbardi fifth instar, Pepper Sauce Canyon, Pinal County, Arizona,
courtesy of Margarethe Brummermann, id by Bill Oehlke

Syssphinx hubbardi fifth instar, Dog Canyon, Otero County, New Mexico,
September 13, 2008, courtesy of Bob Barber

Syssphinx hubbardi/heiligbrodti, pre-pupal larva, Monahans sand dunes, Texas,
October 12, 2007, courtesy of Burr Williams.

Syssphinx hubbardi, pupa, courtesy of Adam Fleishman.

Listed below are primary food plant(s) and alternate food plants listed in Stephen E. Stone's Foodplants of World Saturniidae and/or on various internet sites. It is hoped that this alphabetical listing followed by the common name of the foodplant will prove useful. The list is not exhaustive. Experimenting with closely related foodplants is worthwhile.

Acacia Acacia baileyana Acacia greggii Cercidium microphyllum Gleditsia triacanthos Parkinsonia florida Parkinsonia floridum Parkinsonia microphyllum..... Parkinsonia torreyana Prosopis glandulosa Prosopis juliflora Prosopis velutina Robinia pseudoacacia

Acacia Bailey's acacia Catclaw Acacia Foothills Palo Verde/Littleleaf Palo Verde Honeylocust Blue Palo Verde Blue Palo Verde Jerusalem thorn Jerusalem thorn Honey mesquite Mesquite Velvet Mesquite Black locust/false acacia

Syssphinx hubbardi courtesy of Bruce Walsh, Arizona.

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The pronunciation of scientific names is troublesome for many. The "suggestion" at the top of the page is merely a suggestion. It is based on commonly accepted English pronunciation of Greek names and/or some fairly well accepted "rules" for latinized scientific names.

The suggested pronunciations, on this page and on other pages, are primarily put forward to assist those who hear with internal ears as they read.

There are many collectors from different countries whose intonations and accents would be different.

The genus name "Syssphinx" was probably chosen for the similarity of these moths (wing shape and resting position) to moths in the Sphingidae family.

The species name "hubbardi" is honourific for Hubbard.