Agrius cingulatus (pink-spotted hawkmoth)

Identity

Preferred Scientific Name

• Agrius cingulatus Fabricius

Preferred Common Name

• pink-spotted hawkmoth

Other Scientific Names

• Herse cingulata Fabricius
• Protoparce cingulata Fabricius
• Sphinx affinis Goeze
• Sphinx cingulatus Farbicius
• Sphinx druraei Donovan
• Sphinx pungens Eschscholtz

International Common Names

• English: sweet potato hornworm; sweet potato sphinx moth; sweetpotato, hornworm
• Spanish: gusano de la hoja de la batata
• French: chenille des feuilles de la patate

EPPO code

• HERSCI (Herse cingulata)

Taxonomic Tree

• Domain: Eukaryota
•     Kingdom: Metazoa
•         Phylum: Arthropoda
•             Subphylum: Uniramia
•                 Class: Insecta
•                     Order: Lepidoptera
•                         Family: Sphingidae
•                             Genus: Agrius
•                                 Species: Agrius cingulatus

Description

Egg

The egg is very similar to Agrius convolvuli.

Larva

A full-fed larva is 90-100 mm long. It is polymorphic: usually green, brown or yellow. It is very similar to the larva of A. convolvuli, but has never been found in Europe.

Pupa

The pupa is 55-60 mm long. It is very like that of A. convolvuli, but with the proboscis reaching half-way down the wings before reflexing under and ending in a 'bulb' which touches the case near the head. 

Adult

Adults have a grey-brown body with pink bands. The abdomen tapers to a point. The hindwings are grey with black bands and pink at the base. Wingspan 90-120 mm. A. cingulatus differs from A. convolvuli in having bright pink abdominal 'ribs', as opposed to the reddish pink of A. convolvuli, and pink at the base of the hindwing. In f. decolora, the 'pink ribs' are pale pinkish wite, almost white.

See: http://tpittaway.tripod.com/sphinx/list.htm

Distribution

A. cingulatus occurs in the tropics and suptropics of the New World, and in the Galapagos and Hawaiian Islands. As a migrant, it occurs north to Canada, south to Patagonia and the Falkland Islands and, very occasionally, to western Europe. A. cingulatus has recently established itself in the Cape Verde Islands west of Senegal, West Africa (Bauer and Traub, 1980), adults having arrived, presumably, from Brazil.

A. cingulatus occurs within the western Palaearctic region as an autumn vagrant, though the frequency is not known due to its confusion with A. convolvuli. Specimens wave been found in England, UK (Barrett, 1895) and on ships off the French coast. In September 2002, a male was captured at light in the region of Serpa, Baixo Alentejo, Portugal, the first European mainland record for this species (Marabuto, 2006).

There are also reports that this species has established breeding populations on the west coast of Africa (Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire) (Ballesteros-Mejia et al., 2011).

Distribution Table

The distribution in this summary table is based on all the information available. When several references are cited, they may give conflicting information on the status. Further details may be available for individual references in the Distribution Table Details section which can be selected by going to Generate Report.

Host Plants/Plants Affected

Symptoms List

Biology and Ecology

A. cingulatus is an avid visitor to flowers and a strong migrant.

Natural Enemies

References

Ballesteros-Mejia L, Kitching IJ, Beck J, 2011. Projecting the potential invasion of the Pink Spotted Hawkmoth (Agrius cingulata) across Africa. International Journal of Pest Management, 57(2):153-159. http://journalsonline.tandf.co.uk/link.asp?id=100665

Barrett CG, 1895. The Lepidoptera of the British Islands (illus. edn). Vol. 2. London, UK: L. Reeve and Co.

Bauer E, Traub B, 1980. [English title not available]. (Zur Macrolepidopterenfauna der Kapverdischen Inseln. Teil 1. Sphingidae und Arctiidae.) Ent. Z., Frankf. a. M, 90:244-248.

Marabuto E, 2006. The occurrence of a neotropical hawkmoth in southern Portugal: Agrius cingulatus (Fabricius, 1775) (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae). Boletin de la Sociedad Entomologica Aragonesa, 38:163-166.

Schotman CYL, 1989. Plant pests of quarantine importance to the Caribbean. RLAC-PROVEG, No. 21:80 pp.

Distribution Maps

• = Present, no further details
• = Evidence of pathogen
• = Widespread
• = Last reported
• = Localised
• = Presence unconfirmed
• = Confined and subject to quarantine
• = See regional map for distribution within the country
• = Occasional or few reports

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