Cephonodes woodfordii
Encyclopedia
Cephonodes woodfordii is a moth
of the Sphingidae
family. It is known from Papua New Guinea
, the Louisiade Archipelago
and the Solomon Islands
.
It is very similar to Cephonodes hylas hylas
but larger and immediately distinguishable by the orange (not white) underside of the thorax. The underside of the head, thorax and legs are orange. The underside of the abdomen is black with small orange lateral and medial patches on each sternite. The anal tuft is largely black.
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
of the Sphingidae
Sphingidae
Sphingidae is a family of moths , commonly known as hawk moths, sphinx moths and hornworms, that includes about 1,200 species . It is best represented in the tropics but there are species in every region . They are moderate to large in size and are distinguished among moths for their rapid,...
family. It is known from Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
, the Louisiade Archipelago
Louisiade Archipelago
The Louisiade Archipelago is a string of ten larger volcanic islands frequently fringed by coral reefs, and 90 smaller coral islands located 200 km southeast of New Guinea, stretching over more than and spread over an ocean area of between the Solomon Sea to the north and the Coral Sea to...
and the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
.
It is very similar to Cephonodes hylas hylas
Cephonodes hylas
The Pellucid Hawk Moth is a moth of the family Sphingidae. Found in Africa, India, South-East Asia and Australia, the Cephonodes hylas has a wingspan of 45-73 mm....
but larger and immediately distinguishable by the orange (not white) underside of the thorax. The underside of the head, thorax and legs are orange. The underside of the abdomen is black with small orange lateral and medial patches on each sternite. The anal tuft is largely black.
Subspecies
- Cephonodes woodfordii woodfordii
- Cephonodes woodfordii luisae Rothschild & Jordan, 1903 (Papua New Guinea)