pink-spotted hawmoth (Agrius cingulata). Florida, 11/16/21
Found in the southern US and across the neotropics, this species looks very similar to co-occurring sphinx moths in the genus Manduca, but it’s more closely related to several old world species including the famous death’s head moths (Acherontia) than it is to any other sphingid from the Americas. Its caterpillars typically feed on plants in the morning glory family, while the adults nectar on the flowers of those same plants.
moths like this provide an example of a defense strategy called startle coloration- nearly invisible when camouflaged on bark, the moth will flash its bright pink markings if it is found and disturbed, potentially startling a predator long enough for the moth to escape and making it less likely to be found again when it resumes its resting position and ‘disappears’.
