Sphinx pinastri

Pine hawk-moth
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Sphingidae
Genus:	Sphinx
Species:	S. pinastri
Binomial name
Sphinx pinastri Linnaeus, 1758[1]
Synonyms
Hyloicus pinastri Hyloicus asiaticus Butler, 1875 Sphinx saniptri Strecker, 1876 Hyloicus selon de Freina & Witt, 1987 Hyloicus pinastri albescens Cockayne, 1926 Hyloicus pinastri albicans Austaut, 1907 Hyloicus pinastri albicolor Cockayne, 1926 Hyloicus pinastri bicolor (Lempke, 1959) Hyloicus pinastri cenisius Jordan, 1931 Hyloicus pinastri cingulata (Lempke, 1964) Hyloicus pinastri euxinus Derzhavets, 1979 Hyloicus pinastri grisea-distincta Tutt, 1904 Hyloicus pinastri grisea-mediopunctata Tutt, 1904 Hyloicus pinastri grisea-transversa Tutt, 1904 Hyloicus pinastri grisea Tutt, 1904 Hyloicus pinastri medialis Jordan, 1931 Hyloicus pinastri nigrescens (Lempke, 1959) Hyloicus pinastri rubida Cabeau, 1925 Hyloicus pinastri semilugens (Andreas, 1925) Hyloicus pinastri typica-virgata Tutt, 1904 Hyloicus pinastri unicolor Tutt, 1904 Hyloicus pinastri virgata Tutt, 1904 Sphinx pinastri albescens Schnaider, 1950 Sphinx pinastri brunnea Spuler, 1903 Sphinx pinastri fasciata Lampa, 1885 Sphinx pinastri ferrea (Closs, 1920) Sphinx pinastri fuliginosa Lambillion, 1907 Sphinx pinastri minor Stephan, 1924 Sphinx pinastri stehri Stephan, 1926 Sphinx pinastri vittata Closs, 1920

Sphinx pinastri, known as the pine hawk-moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It is found in Palearctic ecozone and sometimes the Nearctic ecozone. This species has been found in Scotland but is usually found in England.^[2]

The larvae feed on Scots pine, Swiss pine, Siberian pine and Norway spruce.

Description

The wings of Sphinx pinastri are gray with black dashes. The wingspan is 2 ³⁄₄–3 ¹⁄₂ inches (70–89 mm).^[3] The moth flies from April to August depending on the location.

The back of the thorax is grey with two dark bands around both sides.^[4]

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  Caterpillar
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  Sphinx pinastri ♀ - MHNT
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  Sphinx pinastri ♀ △ - MHNT

Life

The females lay their eggs in groups of 2 or 3 along pine or spruce needles.^[3]

References

1. "CATE Creating a Taxonomic eScience - Sphingidae". Cate-sphingidae.org. Retrieved 2011-11-01.
2. The Natural History of British Insects By Edward Donovan (accessed January 12, 2009)
3. Butterflies and Moths of North America (accessed January 12, 2009)
4. The Naturalist's Library edited by William Jardine (accessed January 12, 2009)