PROCEEDINGS, 1921 25

TH E OF BRITISH COLUMBIA By E. H. Blackmore, F .E.S.

The family Sphingidae is very poorly represented 111 the north­ western portion of this continent. In boreal North America there are forty diffe rent genera, comprising some 134 species and varietal forms, of which only seven genera and fourteen species are know n to occur in British Columbia. A lberta is not much better represented, as only sixteen forms are recorded from that province-just two more than w e have. It is interesting to note, however, that eight of the species occur in both provinces. Shovving how poorl y we are represented here in this family, I may m ention that in the State of New J ersey alone fifty different species and forms are recorded. Before taking up the species in detail, perhaps 'it would be as well to say a few words about the di ffe rent stages. L arvae. The la rvae of this family are quite characteri stic. As a rule they are large and rather remarkable in appearance, the body is cylindrical and naked and most of them have a caudal horn situat ed near the end of the body on the eig hth abdominal segment. Sometimes in place of this horn is a poli shed eye-like spot. The majority of the species are of some shade of g reen in colour and usually have oblique stripes of a contrasting colour on the sides. The anterior segments are retractile and w hen at rest these segments are drawn back and the front portion of the body raised in t he air. When in thi s posture they a re supposed to represent the Egyptian and it is to this resem­ blance that the typical genus was named Sphinx. The larvae feed upon leaves of trees and shrubs and are solitary, that is, they do not feed in colonies, but each one feeds by itself upon its appropriate food plant. Pupae. Most of the species pass the pupal state deep in the ground in simple cell s made in the earth ; a few species, however, tran sform on the surface of the g round in imperfect COCOOIl S composed of leaves fa stened together with silk. Adults. The majority of the species of this family have very stout, long, conical .bodies, with long na rrow pointed w ings, which, together \\·ith their rapid and powerful flight haye g iven them their coml11o n name of lIawk-. Sometimes they are called Humming-bird 1Ioths on account of t heir habit of remaining poised over a fl ower while extractin g' the nectar, holding themselves in this position by a rapid lll otion of the w in g s. This attitude and the w hirr of the vibrating wings g ives them a strong resemblance to a hUlllming-bird. The tongue as a rule is very long', sometimes longer than the body, and in some species it is nearly six inches in leng th when uncoiled. The antennae are somewhat peculiar, being fusiform (that is spindle shaped) and pris­ matic; they are generall y stouter in the male and usually hooked at the tip. They are, as a rule, crepu scular in their habits, flying at twi­ lig ht and hovering over fl owers from which they extract the nectar with 26 B. C. EXTo:\IOLOGICAL SOCIET¥

their long tongues. They are the most elegant of all the , the quiet but exqui site shades of olive, tan, brown, black and yellow, with touches here and there of pink and blue, combine to make a most harmonious coloration. The different species in British Columbia 2.rrangcd in 2.ccordance with Barnes and McDunnough's Check List are as fo ll ows : (1) 668 Sphinx vancouverensis Hy. Edw., or as it is commonly called, the Vancouver Sphinx. This species is -fai rly common on Van­ couver Island. although it is not well represented in Briti sh Columbia coll ecti ons. It is greyish brown in colour, with shades of paler grey and a fe\\" scattered black lines. It feeds on sno\\'berry and is on the \\'i ng' in July. It occurs from Vancouver I sland throug hout Southern British Columbia to Kaslo and Rossland. Its range extends southward to about San Francisco and east\\"ard to A lberta and Montana. There is a vari ety of this species named albescens T epper, w hich is supposed to fl y \\"ith it, but I haye not seen a specimen of it in any British Columbia collection. It occurs in A lberta, however, and also in Manitoba; it is a smaller . with the costa and outer marg in of the primaries a very pale g rey. as is also the centre of the thorax. In The l\loth Book, p. 51 , Holland speaks of albescens as having a very dark thorax; this is an erro r, as that description appli es to vancou­ verensis, a lthough hi s figure on P late VI is correct. (2) 690 Sphinx perelegans Hr. E dw., or the E legant Sphinx. This is a species which has been overlooked in our collections. It is rather rare but may be more common than supposed. as it is very li able to he confused w ith vancouverensis, especially by those collectors who are not a\\'are of a si milar species occurring in our fa una. It has a much larg-er wing expanse and differs in t he foll owing particulars : it lacks the distinct narrow black line para llelling the outer margin of the primaries; the black sub-apical streak is disconnected, fo r1l1in g in this species t\\"o streaks. one slightl)" below the other; it has also a sm all bro\\'n di scal spot on the primaries, and has a di stinct. w hitish sub­ marginal bane!. This species \\'as first m entioned by the lat e Rev. G. W. Taylor in the Call. E nt. Dec. 1909. }'Je took fi ve specimens \\·ith him to Ottawa and studied them in conjunction with l\lr. A rthur Gibson, and after studying the descriptions of vancouverensis, albescens, vashti and per­ elegans, found that they agreed perfectly w ith the latter. Of the fi\"e specim en s taken. four \\"ere from \Vellin g-ton and one from Peachland. The oll ly three specim ens I ha\"e seen are frOll1 the Duncan di strict, \\·here they \\"e re taken by the late Mr. E . l\1. Skinner some t \\"e nty-fi\"e years ago. In the Bull. B . C. E nt. Soc. Sept. 1906, l\1r. Cockle li st s S. drupiferarum .-\. & S. from Kaslo, identified from Holland's :\1oth Book, but I rather doubt thi s record ancl believe that it refers to per- PROCEEDTXGS, 1D21 27 elegans, a s both specIes are closely allied. in fact perelegans is closer in maculation a nd size tl) drupiferarum tha n it is to vancouverensis. T he species referred to by ~lr. \ V. H. B rittain in B rit. Col. E nt. Socy. Bull. 4. 1914. a s drupiferarum is proiJably perelegans. (3) 705 jamaicensis normal fo r111 geminatus Say. (The TII'in-spot Sphin x ) . T hi s beautifull y coloured expands ahout 2.0 in ches. 'fhe fo re\\'ing:; a re fa\\·n . tipped and handed \\·ith bro\\·n. the hind\\'ings a re carmine in the middle. bordered \\·ith pal e tan: near the anal angle is a large black spot in which there are t\\'o smaller hlue spots. \\'hich g,l\'e ri se to the specific name geminatus. T h is species \\'as origina ll y named and descri bed by Drury in error as cuming from the Jc;J a nd of Jamaica. Tie a lso \\'as unfortunate in ha\'ing for hi s type an aberra nt spec im en in which the large black spot contained onl y one blue one. Such specimens occur \'ery occasionall y, a s also does one in \\'hich three hlue spots occur in the ocellus and th is is nam ed tripartitus Crt. T he first specimens that I sa\\' of geminatus in British Columbia \\' ere t\\·o or three in t he coll ection of 1\11'. \ V . D OII·nes. taken at A rmstrong. and \\'hich I recorded in C ih::io n's E nt. Record fo r 1917, \\· ith a note l hat it was "the only record \\'e ha\'e for B . C." Since then, hOIl'e ve r, I ha\'e seen se\'era l m ore specim en s taken by :\1r. .r\. L. ~1eu ge n s a t K elo\\·na. The la rva fe eds upon a \'ariety of trees. including apple. . e1111 , a sh, \\·iU o\\, and \\'il d cherr)·. It is quite C0111 111 0n in the :\Iiddle Atlantic Sta tes. (4) 706a. race opthalmicus Bd v. The Eyed Hawk l\Ioth. This is w ithout doubt the commonest species of thi s genus occurring on Vancou\,e r bla nd ; a lthoug h in Eastern Canada it is compa rati\'ely ra re. It is on the \\'ing in la te April and early ~ IIa y and can be found hangi ng to electric li g ht cables in almost a ny street of our coast cities; on one occa sion I took 9 specimen s off on e cable wire. T he fe1ll a le lays eggs [I'cel,:- in cO ll f'i nelll ent- ILlI'gc ronnd \\' hi te ones­ li ke sma ll pearl s. 'fhe specie:; is easil y bred. the laJ'\'ae feeding on di ffe rent species of \\·i ll o\\·. The spec ies is di stributcd from \ -ancou\' er I sland to the foothill s of the Rockies. (5) 706a. S. cerisyi opthalmicus fo rm pallidulus Ech\'. This i ~ a 1l1 0:; t heautiful form. as a ll the um her h rO\\,l1 and g rey co l o urin g~ 'are replaced by shadcs of palc oli\'eaceou s a nci light tan. It is rather rare in coll ection s : I only kll o\\ o f i'1 \'e or six ~pec i 11l e n s bein g taken. captured one on June 26th. 1913. a nd h ed another one on July l-1-th () f the sa11le -," ca r. Mr. l)h

~ Jr . Cockl e of l\.. Clslo olle or t\\·,J. 1 t i~ interc,;ting to note that these \'cry pale for ms do not C11ll'1'gc ull ti l frt )!1l (J Il C tu t\\·o 11l () nths later than t he t.\·p ica I furm s. (0) 707 Paonias excaecata .\ . 0.:. ~;. (The l\l in d Sphinx ). T his gellus dirfcrs fro111 the p receding genera in tha t the head is cr e ~t cd a ne! the apC' x u[ the costal margin of the hilld \\ing's i,; produced in to a SU1l1e- 28 B. C. ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY

what broad lobe. There are only three species in this genus. two of which occur within the Province. Its range in British Columbia is from Vancouver I sland to the Kootenays, and it occurs right across the continent to the New E ng land States, where it is quite common. It feeds upon various plants of the order Rosaceae but does not confine itself to these, as it will fee d upon , poplar and other forest trees. (7) 708 Paonias myops Ab. & Sm. (The Small-eyed Sphinx). This is a smaller species than the preceding and somewhat prettier in ornamentation. The food plants and localities are much the same as excaecatus but it is much less common. It is rather rare in British Columbia and has been reported from the Okanagan District and from East K ootenay. I do not think that it occurs on Vancouver I sland; so far I have not seen it in any collection on the Island. (8) 711 Pachysphinx modesta R. & J. This species has two pop­ ular names, the Modest Sphinx in allusion to the quiet modest tints in which it is clothed, and the Big P oplar Sphinx on account of poplar bein g its chi ef food plant, althoug h it wi ll also feed on willow. It is the largest of our local sphingids, measuring from 4 to 5 inches in wing expanse. T he body and basal third of the fore wing is pale olive, with the outer third of the wing a darker oli ve and the middle third darker still with a minute oli ve discal dot. The hind wings are dull carmine red in the centre w ith a bluish grey patch near the anal angle. T he larva when full grown is about 3 inches long, of a pale green colour and coarsely granulated, the granules studied with fine white points, g iving it a frosted appearance. This specie s is recorded from the Okanagan to the foothills of the Rockies, but is somewhat rare. Out­ side of the Province it extends to the Atlantic coast and southwards into the northern portion of Mexico; but is not common in any locality. (9) 732 Haemorrhagia thysbe form cimbiciformis Steph. (Hum­ ming Bird Clearwing). T hi s section of the Sphingidae differs from all others in having the middle of all the w ings transparent, that is, free from scales. In many species the abdomen of the male ends in a fan­ shaped anal tuft. In our 1906 " list," thysbe is li sted from the coast, but I have never been able t o trace the specimens that the record refers to. The insect that occurs in British Columbia is the form cimbiciformis and it differs from thysbe in the outline of the inner margin of the broad outer band of the primaries; in our form the line is even or slig htly sinuate, in thysbe the line is strongly dentate. It is .the rarest Hawk Moth that we have in the P rovince, I only know of three specimens being taken, although there may be others of which I have no record. The speci­ men shown was taken in the Bulkley Valley in June, 1914, and the late Wolley Dod records one taken at Field in 1909. Strange to say, it is the commonest species of the genus in Eastern Canada and the New E ngland States. The larva feeds on viburum, honeysuckle and snow­ berry. PROCEEDINGS, 192 1 29

(10) 735d. Haemorrhagia diffinis race rubens Hy. Edw. (The Bumble-bee Hawk Moth) . This species is very common in certain localities on Vancouver I sland and occurs all throug h the Province as far as the East Kootenays. It is very diffi cult to capture on the wing as its flight is exceeding ly rapid and when once struck at and missed it is gone for good. The best and easiest way to capture them is t o stand perfectly still, b.e fore a patch of blossom w hich they are known t o fre­ quent, w ith ones net ready to strike, and as soon as one comes within striking distance, to make a sweep at it, creating as little disturbance as possible. One afternoon in early May several years ago I captured over 20 in an hour a nd a half in a small area about 6 yards long by 2 yards in w idth. It feed s on snowberry and I have bred them from a spec ies of barberry. It may not be known to all of you that w hen these moths emerge from their pupal state, their wings are covered with scales, which how­ ever are somewhat loosely attached. These scales become detached after the fi rst fli g ht, thus rendering the w ings transparent, with the exception of a narrow border round the edges. In our 1906 Check L ist we have li sted both thetis and palpalis, the latter is now a synonym of the former. The record is ,nong, however, as rubens is the form t hat we get in British Columbia ; thetis is a much small er species and occurs in Wyoming and Colorado. ( 11 ) 752 Prosperinus c1arkiae Bdv. (Clark's Day-sphinx). T hi s is rather a small but pretty species, the fore w ings are a pale oli ve g reen with an oblique brol\·ni sh median band and a triaJlgular brownish patch near the apex . The hind wings are orange yellow marg in ed w ith black. It is not a common species by any m ean s. It emerges about the middle of l\l ay and is found hovering over ·flowers in the brig ht sunshine. It occurs on Vancouve r Island and is recorded from Vernon. I also have one specimen from Trail, but so far j'vIr. Cockle has not taken it at Kaslo. (12 ) 753a. Prosperinus ftavofasciata race ulalume Strecker. T hi s species is rather local but it is not uncommon where it occurs. It is a day-flier and like the preceding species is fond of hovering over flowers. In a certain orchard near Cobble Bil1 , it is very coml11 on round the cherry trees when they a re in bloom. It is fairly commOn in late April and early May in some parts of Vancouver. It is also taken at Kaslo and I have it from Mission and Rossland. The larvae are reported to have been found fe eding on fireweed. ( 13) 761 Celerio gallii race intermedia Kirby. (The Bedstraw Hawk-moth ) . So call ed as the larvae feed upon the common bedstraw Galium triftorum. This is the N orth American representative of gallii, which is very common in E urope. Dr. Dyar in his Catalogue made intermedia a synonym of gallii, but Rothschild and J ordan in t heir Revision of the Sphingidae have restored the name of intermedia, which is applied to our North American 30 n. C. EXTo}LOLOG l C \ L SOCI ETY

race. It is very C0111mo n throughont the P rovince and it occurs all over Canada a nd the U nited States: It is often seen hovering over fl ower s in the t\\'ilig ht a nd is attracted by li g ht . I have seen dozen s of them flyi ng around the arc-li g hts in the suburbs of V ictor ia. (14) 762 Celerio lineata Fab. (The Stri ped Morning Sphinx) . This is supposed to he the COl11 monest sph in g id in ~o r th America a nd has probably the most extensi\'e range of any of them. Southern British Columbia is probably its northernmost limit ; it ext ends from coast to coast in the U n ited States and r

EARLY STAGES OF NEPYTIA PHANTASMARIA STRECKER (LEPIDOPTERA) By Ceo. O. Day _-\ female of thi s species captured fl y in g at Q uamichan, Vancouver I sland, on 3rd Sept., 1915, and con fi ned in a chip box, laid 69 eggs in small batches of from two to ten each, the ova securely attached by their sides. Colour a dull li g ht g reen o f a yell o \\'i sh tinge. Shape bluntly oval-upper and lower si.des very sli g htly fl attened-looked at under hand len s no surface m arkings \\'ere v isible. M icropylar end o f egg' rather flat w ith a central dot. After ten days or a fortnig ht the colour changed to a purplish gray as if the la rva enclosed was in process of formation. but the eggs continued in thi s condition \\'ithout hatch ing. O n 17t h October I cut 011e o f the eggs open and fo un el it fi ll ed \\'ith a -"ello\\'i sh g reen fluid \\'ithout a ny sign of lan'al deyclop11lent . :\0 lan'ae appeared until the follc)\\'ing :\ ray, \\·hen on the 7th of that 1110n th I found t \\' 0 on the lid of the box. e\'jdentl:: just hatched out, and the re11laind er follo\\'ed in th e cuurse of a fe\\' days. L ength 3 nl.111. H ead and cla spers \\'icl er than the rest o f the budy: head black. Skin behind the head seemed to fo ld () \'CT it. Thi" fold. and the anal c la~per s , lighter in colour than the req () f the hudy, being