''Isognathus occidentalis'' 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.

Distribution

It is known from

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

, northern

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 ...

and

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

Description

There are probably multiple generations per year. Isognathus occidentalis MHNT CUT 2010 0 347 RN2 Pk 40 Guyane female dorsal.jpg, Female dorsal Isognathus occidentalis MHNT CUT 2010 0 347 RN2 Pk 40 Guyane female ventral.jpg, Female ventral

Biology

The larvae have been recorded feeding on ''

Himatanthus lancifolius ''Himatanthus'' is a genus of flowering plant in the family Apocynaceae, first described as a genus in 1819. It is native to Panama and South America. ;Species # '' Himatanthus articulatus'' (Vahl) Woodson - widespread from Panama east to French ...

''. They have long tails and very colourful, suggesting they are unpalatable to birds.

References

Isognathus Moths described in 1929 Taxa named by Benjamin Preston Clark Sphingidae of South America {{Dilophonotini-stub