''Pachysphinx occidentalis'', the big poplar 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 ...

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, ...

. The species was first described by Henry Edwards in 1875. It lives throughout

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

and the United States. The habitat consists of riparian areas and suburbs. 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 ...

is 130–150 mm. There are two color forms, a pale form with yellow-brown forewings, which are dark gray in the dark form. The lines and bands are well defined. The upperside of the hindwing has a crimson patch covering varying amounts of the wing, and two dark lines which do not form a distinct triangle. There are two generations per year in southern Arizona with adults on wing from May to September. Farther north, there is one generation per year with adults on wing from June to August. The larvae feed on cottonwood ''

Populus ''Populus'' is a genus of 25–30 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar (), aspen, and cottonwood. The we ...

'' and ''

Salix Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist s ...

'' species.

Subspecies

*''Pachysphinx occidentalis occidentalis'' (from Alberta and North Dakota west to eastern Washington, south to Texas, Arizona, southern California, and Baja California Norte) *''Pachysphinx occidentalis regalis'' Rothschild & Jordan, 1903 (Mexico)

Gallery

File:Pachysphinx occidentalis larva.jpg, Young larva File:Pachysphinx occidentalis ova.jpg, Eggs

References

External links

*
"''Pachysphinx occidentalis occidentalis'' (H. Edwards, 1875)"
''Sphingidae of the Americas''. Retrieved December 19, 2018. Smerinthini Moths of North America Lepidoptera of Mexico Moths described in 1875 Taxa named by Henry Edwards {{Smerinthini-stub