''Sphinx libocedrus'', the incense cedar 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 species was first described by Henry Edwards in 1881. It ranges from the western

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 ...

to southern

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 ...

and

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 Guatema ...

. The larvae feed on New Mexican forestiera ('' Forestiera neomexicana''), ''

Forestiera angustifolia ''Forestiera'' is a genus of flowering plants in the olive family, Oleaceae. Members of the genus are often called swampprivets.Fraxinus gooddingii ''Fraxinus gooddingii'', the Tiburón ash or Goodding's ash, is a tree native to Sonora and southern Arizona. It is reported from Cochise and Santa Cruz Counties in Arizona, and from numerous locations in Sonora (including Isla Tiburón, Shar ...

'' in the olive family (

Oleaceae Oleaceae, also known as the olive family, is a taxonomic family of flowering shrubs, trees, and a few lianas in the order Lamiales, It presently comprises 28 genera, one of which is recently extinct.Peter S. Green. 2004. "Oleaceae". pages 296-30 ...

Subspecies

*''Sphinx libocedrus libocedrus'' (from Texas west through New Mexico and Arizona to southern California and further south to Sonora and Baja California Sur) *''Sphinx libocedrus achotla'' Mooser, 1944 (Mexico)

References

External links

"Incense cedar sphinx (''Sphinx libocedrus'')"
''Moths of North America''. Archived August 31, 2005. Sphinx (genus) Moths of North America Moths described in 1881 {{Sphinginae-stub