Information about Ceratomia Catalpae

Catalpa Sphinx
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Lepidoptera Family: Sphingidae Genus: Ceratomia Species: C. catalpae
Binomial name
Ceratomia catalpae Boisduval, 1875

The Catalpa Sphinx (Ceratomia catalpae) is a hawk moth of the Sphingidae famliy.

Range

Ceratomia catalpae is a native of southeastern North America and can be located on catalpa tree that grow within this region.

Life Cycle

From oviposition of the eggs to pupation, about four weeks will pass. Where multiple broods occur, pupae will eclose in two weeks, or when conditions are suitable. Adult C. catalpae don't reflect the wonderful colors of its larvae. They are a dull brown color lacking that show-off appearance of its larval stages.

Egg

Translucent, milky-white, green, or yellowish eggs are oval, being about .5 mm in diameter. Eggs are deposited in masses of 100-1000 eggs on the undersurface of leaves, while smaller masses are deposited onto branches on the Catalpa tree. Eggs incubate and hatch five to seven days after oviposition.

Larva

The larval stage of C. catalpae is known as the Catalpa or Catawba Worm. When first hatching, the larvae are a very pale color, but become darker toward the last instars. The yellow caterpillars will usually have a dark, black stripe down their back along with black dots along their sides. Their is also a "pale" phase where the black striping is not as prevalent or missing altogether and a shade of white has replaced it. They grow to a length of about 5 cm (2 in) and feed on the leaves of the Northern Catalpa and, more commonly, the Southern Catalpa, also known as Catawba or Indian Bean trees. They are highly desired by fisherman as bait.

Pupa

Like most other Sphingidae, Ceratomia catalpae will burrow into the ground after its fifth and final instar in order to pupate. The larvae will go into a "wandering" stage where it leaves the Catalpa tree and climbs to the ground to find a place to bury itself so that it may pupate. The larvae will then shed its fifth instar skin to reveal its pupal skin, which will be soft and almost translucent at first, but will then harden to a light brown for protection from the elements

Adult

The adult Catalpa Sphinx is brown in color with a circular band of dark brown or black surrounding it's thorax. Each forewing has a small, dark mark towards the middle, with a white dot in the cell. The body is approximately 30mm long.

Images of Life Cycle

Two second instar laravae	Two different larval instars	Two C. catalpae in their last instar	Catalpa Sphinx resting
C. catalpae adult

Food Plants

C. catalpae can be quite harmful to the Catalpa tree during large outbreaks. The first trial of aerial crop dusting was an attempt to control the Catalpa Sphinx.

• Catalpa bignonioides, (Southern Catalpa)
• Catalpa speciosa, (Northern Catalpa)

External links

• Catalpa sphinx, Moths of North America
• Ceratomia catalpae, Sphingidae of the Americas