Willowherb Hawkmoth

Willowherb Hawkmoth
Proserpinus proserpina
Conservation status
Data Deficient  (IUCN 2.3)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Sphingidae
Genus:	Proserpinus
Species:	P. proserpina
Binomial name
Proserpinus proserpina (Pallas, 1772)[1]
Synonyms
Sphynx proserpina Pallas, 1772 Sphinx schieffermilleri Fuessly, 1779 Sphinx oenotherae Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775 Sphinx francofurtana Fabricius, 1781 Proserpinus aenotheroides Butler, 1876 Proserpinus proserpina attenuata Schultz, 1904 Proserpinus proserpina brunnea Geest, 1903 Proserpinus proserpina grisea Rebel, 1910 Proserpinus proserpina infumata (Closs, 1911) Proserpinus proserpina schmidti Schmidt, 1914 Pterogon proserpina gigas Oberthür, 1922 Pterogon proserpina japetus Grum-Grshimailo, 1890 Pterogon proserpina maxima Grum-Grshimailo, 1887

The Willowherb Hawkmoth (Proserpinus proserpina) is a species of moth in the Sphingidae family.

It is found in Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Morocco, Netherlands, Portugal, Poland Spain, Switzerland, Syria, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.^[2]

Caterpillar

Proserpinus proserpina

The habitat mainly consists of damp, woodland clearings and edges of woods, especially in valleys. It is also found on sandy waste ground in and around towns. In the Alps, it can be found up to 1,500 meters, in Spain up to 2,000 meters and in Afghanistan up to 1,900 meters.

Description

The wingspan is 36–60 mm. It is highly variable in size but the colour variation is minimal. It is generally a shade of green. Form schmidti has yellow-grey forewings and grey hindwings, form brunnea has a pale leatherish coloration with a reddish median band and form grisea has the green coloration entirely replaced by grey.^[3] In Europe, there is one generation per year with adults on wing in late May and early June. In the south of the range it is found in mid May and at higher altitudes in the Pyrenees it is on wing in June and July. There are two generations per year in North Africa, with adults on wing in March and again from June to July.

The larvae feed on Epilobium (including Epilobium hirsutum, Oenothera and Lythrum species.

References

1. "CATE Creating a Taxonomic eScience - Sphingidae". Cate-sphingidae.org. Retrieved 2011-10-26.
2. World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Proserpinus proserpina. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 31 July 2007.
3. "Sphingidae of the Western Palaearctic". Tpittaway.tripod.com. Retrieved 2011-10-26.

External links

• Proserpinus proserpina, European Butterflies and Moths
• Proserpinus proserpina, UK moths
• Proserpinus proserpina, images on biolib.cz