Manduca occulata is found from Arizona through Mexico into Panama. It is rare in the United States as the majority of the specimens come from Central America.

Manduca genus is a large genus of medium to large sphinx moths found from North America into Argentina. This is a large genus with D'Abrera (1986) suggesting about 70 species. Heppner (1996) lists 67 species. Kitching (2000) shows 66 species in his checklist. These lists have additional subspecies.

Although there are exceptions, many of the Manduca species have orange spots along the side of their abdomens. Most are medium to large sized hawkmoths and excellent fliers.

The following list uses the names and selected type locations for the nominate, synonyms, and subspecies with locations at extremities of their ranges as noted in Heppner (1996) and thus provides a general idea of the range of the various species:

Manduca sexta - United States into Argentina and Chile
Manduca mossi - Peru
Manduca afflica - Bahamas and Cuba
Manduca quinquemaculata - United States of America
Manduca dilucida - Mexico (Veracruz)
Manduca kuschei - Mexico (Sinaloa)
Manduca leceitus - Costa Rica, Surinam, Argentina
Manduca reducta - Peru
Manduca diffisa - Argentina and Bolivia
Manduca jordani - Argentina

Manduca occulta - Mexico (Veracruz and Morelos)
Manduca hannibal - Mexico, Surinam, and Brazil
Manduca pellenia - tropical America and Colombia
Manduca wellingi - Mexico (Yucatan)
Manduca morela - Mexico
Manduca perplex - Brazil
Manduca scutata - Venezuela and Bolivia
Manduca brasiliensis - Brazil
Manduca clarki - Brazil
Manduca tucumana - Argentina

Manduca ochus - Mexico and Honduras
Manduca lefeburei - Bolivia
Manduca incisa - Brazil
Manduca andicola - Peru
Manduca prestoni - Brazil
Manduca stuarti - Bolivia
Manduca manducoides - Bolivia
Manduca brunalba - Brazil and Peru
Manduca rustica - Georgia, Cuba, Mexico, Galapagos
Manduca albiplaga - Brazil and Peru

Manduca trimacula - Colombia
Manduca leucopspila - Peru
Manduca dalica - Peru and Brazil
Manduca brontes - Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti, Surinam
Manduca sesquiplex - Mexico and Costa Rica
Manduca muscosa - Mexico
Manduca bergi - Argentina
Manduca bergamatipes - Argentina
Manduca armatipes - Argentina
Manduca carrerasi - Argentina

Manduca coralline - Mexico
Manduca extrema - Bolivia
Manduca lichenea - Brazil
Manduca feronia - Brazil
Manduca florestan - Surinam, Brazil, Mexico, Argentina
Manduca vestalis- Brazil
Manduca fosteri - Paraguay
Manduca lanuginosa - Mexico (Veracruz)
Manduca crocala - Honduras
Manduca franciscae - Venezuela

Manduca barnesi - Guatemala
Manduca corumbensis - Brazil
Manduca composi - Ecuador
Manduca albolineata - Peru
Manduca maricina - Venezuela
Manduca huascara - Colombia
Manduca chinchilla - Peru
Manduca grandis - Brazil
Manduca caribbea - Haiti
Manduca johanni - Haiti

Manduca azteca - Mexico
Manduca holcombi - Mexico
Manduca empusa - Venezuela
Manduca gueneei - Brazil
Manduca undata - Costa Rica
Manduca cinerea - Argentina
Manduca suavis - Brazil/Panama

New World Sphingini common genera includes Manduca, Sphinx and Cocytius.

Cocytius genus is an American genus of mostly gigantic moths with nine different species, assuming Neococytius cluentus is counted in the group. One species has two forms.

The ten forms of Cocytius genus are as follows:
SPECIES - - - - - RANGE - - - - CHARACTERISTICS
Cocytius antaeus subspecies antaeus - Caribbean - Paler than subspecies medor
Cocytius antaeus ssp medor - South USA to Uruguay - Short stripe between veins in translucent rear wings areas.
Cocytiue beelzebuth - Neotropical - No tramslucent areas in rear wings
Neococytius cluentus - South USA and most of the tropics - White Line in rear wings - No translucent areas.
Cocytius duponchel - Widespread Neotropical - Smaller than but close to C. antaeus
Cocytius lucifer - Neotropical Widespread - Black dorsal abdomen line
Cocytius mortuorum - Brazil, local
Cocytius misionum - Northern Argentina
Cocytius macasensis - Ecuador, local
Cocytius vitrinus - Cuba - Very pale

Sphingidae family contains approximately one thousand species of heavy-bodied moths with strong wings. They are very fast fliers. Most species can hover like hummingbirds. Many of them have a very long proboscis which can be inserted deep into a flower to sip the various nectars. Because of their excellent ability to fly, most species have rather large geographical ranges.

Sphingidae herein are split into three major groups: New World Sphingidae, African Sphingidae, and Eurasia Sphingidae.

Butterflies and Moths (Order Lepidoptera) are a group of insects with four large wings. They go through various life cycles including eggs, caterpillar (larvae), pupae, and adult. Most butterflies and moths feed as adults, but primarily do most of their growing in the larval or caterpillar stage. Also, most species are restricted to feeding as caterpillars upon a unique set of plants. In this pairing of insects to plants, there arises a unique plant population control system. When one plant species becomes too common, specific pests to that species also become more common and thus prevent the further spreading of that particular plant species.

Although most people think of the Lepidoptera as two different groups: butterflies and moths, technically, the concept is not valid.

Some families, such as Silk Moths (Saturnidae) and Hawk Moths (Sphingidae), are clearly moths. Other families, such as Swallowtail Butterflies (Papilionidae), are clearly butterflies, However, several families exhibit characteristics that appear to be neither moths nor butterflies. For example: the Castnia Moths of South America are frequently placed in the Skipper Family (Hesperidae). The Sunset Moths (Uranidae) have long narrow antennae and fly during the day.

The Saturnidae (Silk Moths) and Papilionidae (Swallowtails) are two Lepidoptera families that have been very carefully researched as to species and subspecies. The current thinking is that if the male genitalia are alike, then the two specimens belong to the same species. As an amateur, your editor disagrees with this premise. If the genitalia are different, then no doubt two species are involved. However, if the genitalia are alike, it only proves that the genitalia are alike.

Consider Papilio multicaudata which is found in southern Canada at higher altitudes. Papilio multicaudata is found south through the Rocky Mountains as far south as Mexico City, and recently as far south as Guatemala. With different food plants, different soil types, different climates, and different seasonal patterns, it is hard to believe that this complex is all one species.

Consider capturing 100 living individuals at any life stage in Guatemala and then carrying them north to southern Canada. Would these individuals survive through several generations. If they would not survive, then this author would conclude that two different species are involved!

In the Saturnidae consider Eacles imperialis subspecies pini. This life form feeds on pines. Is not this sufficient to justify a full species status?

Note: Numerous museums and biologists have loaned specimens to be photographed for this project.



Insects (Class Insecta) are the most successful animals on Earth if success is measured by the number of species or the total number of living organisms. This class contains more than a million species, of which North America has approximately 100,000. (Recent estimates place the number of worldwide species at four to six million.)

Insects have an exoskeleton. The body is divided into three parts. The foremost part, the head, usually bears two antennae. The middle part, the thorax, has six legs and usually four wings. The last part, the abdomen, is used for breathing and reproduction.

Although different taxonomists divide the insects differently, about thirty-five different orders are included in most of the systems.

The following abbreviated list identifies some common orders of the many different orders of insects discussed herein:

Odonata: - Dragon and Damsel Flies
Orthoptera: - Grasshoppers and Mantids
Homoptera: - Cicadas and Misc. Hoppers
Diptera: - Flies and Mosquitoes
Hymenoptera: - Ants, Wasps, and Bees
Lepidoptera: - Butterflies and Moths
Coleoptera: - Beetles


Jointed Legged Animals (Phylum Arthropoda) make up the largest phylum. There are probably more than one million different species of arthropods known to science. It is also the most successful animal phylum in terms of the total number of living organisms.

Butterflies, beetles, grasshoppers, various insects, spiders, and crabs are well-known arthropods.

The phylum is usually broken into the following five main classes:
Arachnida: - Spiders and Scorpions
Crustacea: - Crabs and Crayfish
Chilopoda: - Centipedes
Diplopoda: - Millipedes
Insecta: - Insects

There are several other "rare" classes in the arthropods that should be mentioned. A more formal list is as follows:

Sub Phylum Chelicerata
C. Arachnida: - Spiders and scorpions
C. Pycnogonida: - Sea spiders (500 species)
C. Merostomata: - Mostly fossil species

Sub Phylum Mandibulata
C. Crustacea: - Crabs and crayfish

Myriapod Group
C. Chilopoda: - Centipedes
C. Diplopoda: - Millipedes
C. Pauropoda: - Tiny millipede-like
C. Symphyla: - Garden centipedes

Insect Group
C. Insecta: - Insects

The above list does not include some extinct classes of Arthropods such as the Trilobites.

Animal Kingdom contains numerous organisms that feed on other animals or plants. Included in the animal kingdom are the lower marine invertebrates such as sponges and corals, the jointed legged animals such as insects and spiders, and the backboned animals such as fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

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