Questions and Answers

Some of you have posed very specific questions that are probably not answered in any of the general articles on the site. I will attempt to answer but would greatly appreciate any member assistance.

Send me your responses and I will post them for all to see.

Bill,

How do you determine the sex of captured Sphingidae? There is little or no easily discernible difference in the antennae structure of male and female Sphingidae. Most of the males, however, have well developed anal claspers and frequently these will "flare open" upon capture and inspection with the moth's thorax held between thumb and index finger. I can sometimes "sex" male Pachysphinx modesta and other large Sphingidae in flight as the claspers are often wide open as they fly in to lights. For the smaller sphingids a pin or needle will usually let you discover the claspers. Careful!

At rest, the males of the "eye spotted" species have a pronounced arch (almost banana shaped) to the abdomens. I can quickly glance at resting Paonias and Smerinthus and Pachysphinx species and determine sex from the body contour. The abdomens of the females are not arched and hang straight down when moths are resting.

Females also tend to have a "turkey baster" shaped abdomen, plump and cylindrical for most of the length with a quick taper near the tip to an "egg-laying neck". The males tend to have much narrower abdomens with a constant taper from thorax to abdominal tip.

Enjoy the Sphingidae. Females usually oviposit inside brown paper bags. Some species require feeding of sugar/honey/water solution to maximize egg production. Most species are disease resistant and larvae readily pupate under layers of paper towels as opposed to the troublesome pupation mediums once thought necessary.

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