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Carolina Sphinx or Six-Spotted Sphinx

Manduca sexta

Photo by annorion
Published on Project Noah
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29.7719, -90.8092

Field Notes

Description:

I'm not sure if this is a spinx moth or hummingbird moth. I attempted to grow a few tomato plants in 5 gallon buckets this spring and they didn't do as well as I hoped. So I dumped the soil out the buckets into the yard and to my surprise there was more than soil. There was a cocoon. So I tried to be gentle and it bury back into the soil I dumped. Later that evening a moth appeared near where I dumped the soil. I planted the tomatoes in late March and don't recall seeing any caterpillars on the the tomato at any point.

Notes:

tobacco hornworm caterpillar
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/6886571

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (3)

Nice thanks for the tip! Extra resources are always appreciated :)
Glad to be of help. What you want is an ID guide. Check out http://www.discoverlife.org/mp/20q?guide=Moth&flags=HAS: http://www.discoverlife.org/mp/20q?guide=Butterflies I have found (and they admit) that not everything is in the database but is does help.
Hey 1Sarah2! Your suggestion for post http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/6862487 just helped me identify this guy. I searched around before I posted and couldn't find a match but after seeing your post a couple more searches and blame! Guess finding it in my tomato bucket should have been a clue. Thanks!!
Photographed
PublishedJuly 16, 2011

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