''Cocytius antaeus'', the giant sphinx, 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 w ...

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, bu ...

. The species was first described by

Dru Drury Dru Drury (4 February 1724 – 15 December 1803) was a British collector of natural history specimens and an entomologist. He had specimens collected from across the world through a network of ship's officers and collectors including Henry Sme ...

in 1773.

Distribution

It is found from

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

through

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

and into the southern parts of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, and

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in the United States.

Description

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 of ...

is 126–178 mm. Very rare in North America, it was once thought to be the only insect in the continent with a long enough proboscis to pollinate the similarly rare ghost orchid. Cocytius antaeus medor MHNT CUT 2010 411, Borceira, Salesopolis, Bresil, male dorsal.jpg, Male dorsal Cocytius antaeus medor MHNT CUT 2010 411, Borceira, Salesopolis, Bresil, male ventral.jpg, Male ventral Cocytius antaeus medor MHNT CUT 2010 0 411 Itatiaia, Bresil, femelle dorsal.jpg, Female dorsal Cocytius antaeus medor MHNT CUT 2010 0 411 Itatiaia, Bresil, femelle ventral.jpg, Female ventral

Biology

The larvae feed on ''

Annona glabra ''Annona glabra'' is a Tropics, tropical fruit tree in the family Annonaceae, in the same genus as the soursop and cherimoya. Common names include pond apple, alligator apple (so called because American alligators often eat the fruit), swamp appl ...

'', ''

Annona reticulata ''Annona reticulata'' is a small deciduous or semi-evergreen tree in the plant family Annonaceae and part of the Annonas group. It is best known for its fruit, called custard apple, a common name shared with fruits of several other species in t ...

'', ''

Annona purpurea ''Annona purpurea'' is an edible fruit and medicinal plant in the Annonaceae family. It is native to Mexico, Central America, and parts of South America. Its common names include soncoya, sincuya, and cabeza de negro. Description It is a small t ...

'', '' Annona holosericea'' and '' Rollinia membranacea''.

References

External links

* Sphingini Moths described in 1773 Sphingidae of South America Moths of South America Taxa named by Dru Drury {{Sphinginae-stub