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Sticker of Achemon sphinx
Bug card No. 0007 of 4,939

Achemon sphinx

Eumorpha achemon
Eats: Nectar and pollenMothsGardens and meadows6 legs

The Achemon sphinx is a big hawk moth with brown front wings. When it opens them, it shows back wings that are a lovely pale pink. It visits flowers in the evening like a little hummingbird.

Lives in
Most of the United States, southern Canada and northern Mexico
Wingspan
8.7 to 9.7 cm (3.4 to 3.8 in)
Top speed
about 50 km/h (31 mph)
Flying, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. It cannot bite or sting.
What does it eat?
The moth drinks nectar from flowers like honeysuckle, petunias and phlox. Its caterpillar eats the leaves of grapevines and Virginia creeper.
For real!Photo of Achemon sphinx
Picture by Geoff Gallice from Gainesville. CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How big is it?

How wide are its wings?

Achemon sphinx wings about 9.7 cm tip to tip (3.8 in)A toy building brick about 3.2 cm (1.3 in)A crayon about 9 cm (3.5 in)A banana about 18 cm (7.1 in)
wings as wide as 3 toy building brickscould fly across a whole football pitch in 7.6 seconds

How big is Achemon sphinx compared to YOU?

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How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

It is one of the five main pollinators of a rare orchid that grows on the American prairies.

2

Its caterpillars come in three colours: light green, reddish orange, or tan to brown.

3

The caterpillars are sometimes found munching grape leaves in vineyards.

4

In the north one family of moths grows up each year, but in the south there are two.

you asked

Most asked questions about Achemon sphinx

?How big is the Achemon sphinx?

Its wings measure about 9 to 10 centimetres from tip to tip.

?What does the Achemon sphinx caterpillar eat?

Leaves of grapevines, Virginia creeper and related plants.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Eumorpha achemon
Named by
Drury, 1773
Group
Moths
Family
Sphingidae
Classification
Insecta > Lepidoptera > Sphingidae
Lives on
North America

Where the facts come from

  1. Eumorpha achemon (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Geoff Gallice from Gainesville. CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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More from the same group: Moths

Also at home here: Gardens and meadows

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