It’s not uncommon for me to be urgently summoned to see and identify a ‘bug’ that my wife or kids have stumbled upon. Such was the case with this sizeable caterpillar my daughter found on the Virginia Creeper overtaking our deck.
“What is it?!”
Compared to most caterpillars found in Manitoba, this one is giant – about the size of my pointer finger (which its ‘legs’ would gently but firmly clasp when I picked it up).
I knew it was the caterpillar of some kind of sphinx moth, but I had to do a bit of detective work to figure out which one. Sphinx moths are a family of large, strong flying moths. They are sometimes mistaken for hummingbirds as they hover in front of flowers to collect nectar with their long tongues. Some species have remarkable pollination relationships with certain orchid flowers.
It turns out this caterpillar was the larval edition of the Achemon Sphinx (Eumorpha achemon). These caterpillars feed on plants like Virginia Creepers and Grapes – I have both in my yard so provide a culinary profusion for this species. The adult is a handsome creature but as they’re nocturnal it’s rare to spot one. This species is one of the few that pollinates the globally endangered Western Prairie Fringed Orchid found in southeastern Manitoba. The mechanics of this pollination relationship are fascinating but will have to wait for future post.
After greeting it, we placed it back on its food source and were glad to have made its acquaintance. Perhaps next year we will meet its offspring.
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