Wildlife Watching Wednesday: The Poplar Sphinx Moth

By: Tom Berg

Most moths don’t seem to get the love that butterflies enjoy. People like butterflies because they are colorful, they flit along almost playfully on bright sunny days, and they are totally harmless to humans. They also pollinate the flowers that we spend so much time growing in our gardens.

One moth that should get some love, though, is the poplar sphinx moth (sphinx moths are also called hawk moths). Poplar sphinx moths are fairly large, with a wingspan of 4-6 inches. Their forewings provide almost perfect camouflage against tree bark, since they are a natural-looking combination of brown, tan and gray. Their hindwings are where the color is; they are reddish-maroon with a dash of bluish-gray towards the body, edged with black. The body of this moth is very plump and fat, and like most moths the body is covered with soft scales that look like fur.

Large hawk moths like this one are sometimes also called hummingbird moths, because most of the different species are about the same size as hummingbirds and they fly around from flower to flower at night just like those beautiful little birds do during the day. Adult poplar sphinx moths, however, do not feed at all during their short life. They usually only live for 2-3 weeks before mating and dying.

Although adult poplar sphinx moths do not feed, the caterpillars are voracious eaters. They are usually found feeding on the leaves of poplar trees (thus the name poplar sphinx moth), cottonwoods, willows and aspens. Adult moths are also drawn to lights at night, and this is one of the best ways to see them. Some people even leave a light on outside all night, and then check around it in the morning to see if any moths have lingered on the pavement below or are still clinging to the side of the house.

Adult poplar sphinx moths are often eaten by bats while flying at night, and the large caterpillars provide food for many kinds of birds. They are an important link in the ecosystem, and even though most people have never see one, they are common throughout much of the United States and Canada.

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