Laothoe populi

Poplar hawk-moth
In Oxfordshire, England
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Sphingidae
Genus: Laothoe
Species:
L. populi
Binomial name
Laothoe populi
Synonyms
List
    • Sphinx populi Linnaeus, 1758
    • Sphinx tremulae Borkhausen, 1793
    • Merinthus palustris Holle, 1865
    • Smerinthus borkhauseni Bartel, 1900
    • Smerinthus roseotincta Reuter, 1893
    • Amorpha populi angustata (Closs, 1916)
    • Amorpha populi depupillatus (Silbernagel, 1943)
    • Amorpha populi flavomaculata Mezger, 1928
    • Amorpha populi lappona Rangnow, 1935
    • Amorpha populi pallida Tutt, 1902
    • Amorpha populi philiponi Huard, 1928
    • Amorpha populi suffusa Tutt, 1902
    • Laothoe populi albida Cockayne, 1953
    • Laothoe populi basilutescens Cockayne, 1953
    • Laothoe populi bicolor (Lempke, 1959)
    • Laothoe populi minor (Vilarrubia, 1973)
    • Laothoe populi moesta Cockayne, 1953
    • Laothoe populi pallida Newnham, 1900
    • Merinthus populi salicis Holle, 1865
    • Smerinthus populi cinerea-diluta Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi decorata Schultz, 1903
    • Smerinthus populi ferruginea-fasciata Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi ferruginea Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi fuchsi Bartel, 1900
    • Smerinthus populi grisea-diluta Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi grisea Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi pallida-fasciata Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi rectilineata Klemensiewicz, 1912
    • Smerinthus populi rufa-diluta Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi rufa Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi rufescens (de Selys-Longschamps, 1857)
    • Smerinthus populi rufescens Fuchs, 1889
    • Smerinthus populi subflava Gillmer, 1904
    • Smerinthus populi violacea Newnham, 1900

Laothoe populi, the poplar hawk-moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. It is found throughout the Palearctic region and the Near East and is one of the most common members of the family in the region.[2] It is distinctive due to its habit of resting with its hindwings held further forward than (but still half hidden by) the forewings.

Adults may be seen from May to September, and do not feed, not having a functional proboscis, and can vary in colour from grey to yellow. The larva is green, feeds on poplar and some other tree species, and pupates below ground.

  1. ^ "Sphingidae Taxonomic Inventory: Laothoe populi". sphingidae.myspecies.info. Retrieved 2023-06-25.
  2. ^ Pittaway, 1993, page not cited