Hawk Moth Of Papua New Guinea

Not sure about identifying this one, Elephant Hawk Moth Perhaps?

comments (8)

Ferdy Christant

Lion

Wow, this is the very first photo on the site in Papua New Guinea! See this challenge:
http://www.jungledragon.com/forum/26/challenges/347/challenge_be_the_first_to_geotag_in_an_unknown_country.html

I've been keeping an eye on that country as a possible destination for travel, but there's a lot of buzz that it is not safe? Posted 10 years ago
1. physignathus
  
  King Cobra
  
  Hi Ferdy that's a great challenge and I'm very pleased to be the first one for P.N.G I have a few more exotic moth shots from there, I will upload some of them. P.N.G can be a very dangerous place to be but I loved it there and cant wait to go back, the jungles are amazing full of out of this world creatures some of which have never been identified! I was there for only 5 days visiting a friend who worked on an inland gas and oil drilling platform and didn't get to take as many shots as I would have liked, but I made friends with a few of the locals (nationals as they liked to be called) one of which has invited me to stay in his village, which like you said may not be to safe but I think it would be worth the risk! They are very nice people but have a very primitive eye for an eye justice system of their own which can be extremely aggressive and brutal! I stayed in Port Moresby for 2 days and I certainly would not recommend this as a place worth visiting! Posted 10 years ago
2. 1. Ferdy Christant
    
    Lion
    
    Thank you for that information. The jungle itself would be like a gold mine to me, I love weird critters. I'm still not sure about the safety though, with that I mean personal safety. Posted 10 years ago

WildFlower

Lion

I don't think Deilephila elpenor is the right species as it is pink and yellowish-green while yours is orange and brown. It is hard to identify from this point of view only. Do you have a top view on it's wings? Maybe this is a good place to search for a better match.
http://www.papua-insects.nl/insect%20orders/Lepidoptera/Sphingidae/Sphingidae%20thumbnail%20gallery.htm
http://sphingidae.myspecies.info/gallery Posted 10 years ago

physignathus

King Cobra

Thanks for the links Wildflower I checked my Papua New Guinea file and there was a decent pic showing the top view of the same moth and the closest match I could come up with is the Theretra Nessus, would you like me to send you a copy?
Mark. Posted 10 years ago
1. Ferdy Christant
  
  Lion
  
  You can upload it here if you like, no worries. By the way, it's best to use the reply link below a comment, otherwise the person you respond will not get a notification and miss your answer. Posted 10 years ago
2. WildFlower
  
  Lion
  
  That was one of the species I was also considering. It would be nice to have the top view posted here as well. Posted 10 years ago
3. 1. physignathus
    
    King Cobra
    
    Hi I have uploaded the top view, see what you think. Posted 10 years ago

The Yam Hawk Moth

The Yam Hawk Moth is a moth of the Sphingidae family. It is found in Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Burma, Thailand, southern China, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia, northern Australia and New Caledonia. It is a recent immigrant in Oahu.

Info 4 0

Similar species: Moths And Butterflies

Species identified by physignathus

By physignathus

Uploaded Feb 9, 2015. Captured Oct 28, 2014 08:52 in Southern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea.

Explore Papua New Guinea 113 53 0

NIKON D7100
f/22.0
1/250s
ISO100
210mm