Hawkmoths of  Brazil  by Alan Martin

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Aellopos

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Aellopos tantalus tantalus (Linnaeus, 1758)                                         Common name: Tantalus sphinx


Original description: Sphinx tantalus Linnaeus 1758. Syst. Nat. (Edn 10). 1: 493


Synonymous species: Macroglossa sisyphus (Burmeister, 1855); Sphinx ixion (Linnaeus, 1758)


Type specimen locality:  calidrus regionibus (South America ?)


Distribution: widely distributed from Mexico to Paraguay, but there has been confusion with A. clavipes. In Brazil it has been reported from the North, West-central and Southern regions. There is one subspecies, Aellopos tantalus zonata (Drury, 1773) reported from Florida and the West Indies.


Aellopos clavipes clavipes (Rothschild & Jordan, 1903)                     Common name: Clavipes Sphinx


Original description: Sesia clavipes Rothschild & Jordan, 1903. Novit. zool.. 9 (suppl.): 436.


Synonymous species: none


Type specimen locality:  Mexico, Guadalajara


Distribution: the range is from southern USA to Argentina, and in Brazil in the South and South-east. Its similarity to A.tantalus  (only the males can be separated with a microscopic examination) means that it has possibly been overlooked, or the southern records are of a separate species. There is one subspecies, Aellops clavipes eumelas (Jordan, 1924) which is only found in Jamaica.


Aellopos fadus (Cramer, 1775)                                                                   Common name: Fadus Sphinx


Original description: Sphinx fadus Cramer, 1775. Uitlandsche Kapellen (Papillons exot.). 1: 95, pl. 61, fig. C.


Synonymous species: Macroglossum annulosum (Swainson, 1823); Macroglossa balteata (Kirtland, 1851)


Type specimen locality: Surinam


Distribution: found across the Neotropical region from the southern USA to Argentina and Paraguay, and has been recorded in all 5 Brazilian regions.


Aellopos titan titan (Cramer, 1777)                                                         Common name: Titan or White-banded Day Sphinx


Original description: Sphinx titan Cramer, 1777. Uitlandsche Kapellen (Papillons exot.). 2: 73, Pl. 142, fig.F.


Synonymous species: Aellopos titan aguacana (Gehlen, 1944)


Type specimen locality: Surinam


Distribution: a  common species throughout its range from the USA and the West Indies and across most of South America, and has been recorded in all 5 regions of Brazil. This species is a strong flier and has been recorded across the eastern United States and even into southern Canada, and breeding has been confirmed in south Texas (Tuttle, 2007). It is replaced in Cuba by the subspecies Aellopos titan cubana (Clark, 1936) in Cuba.


Aellopos ceculus (Cramer, 1777)                                                               Common name: none


Original description: Sphinx ceculus Cramer, 1777. Uitlandsche Kapellen (Papillons exot.). 2: 80, pl. 146, fig. G.


Synonymous species: Macroglossum fasciatum (Swainson, 1823); Sesia gehleni (Closs, 1922)


Type specimen locality: Surinam


Distribution: recorded widely across Central and South America from Mexico to northern Argentina. A. ceculus has been recorded in all the regions of Brazil.