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Acherontia atropos
The larvae are stout with a posterior horn, as is typical of larvae of the Sphingidae. Most sphingid larvae however, have fairly smooth posterior horns, possibly with a simple curve, either upward or downward. In contrast, Acherontia species and certain relatives bear a posterior horn embossed with round projections about the thicker part. The horn itself bends downwards near the base, but curls upwards towards the tip. The newly-hatched larva starts out a light shade of green but darkens after feeding, with yellow stripes diagonally on the sides. In the second instar, it has thorn-like horns on the back. In the third instar, purple or blue edging develops on the yellow stripes and the tail horn turns from black to yellow. In the final instar, the thorns disappear and the larva may adopt one of three color morphs: green, brown, or yellow. Larvae do not move much, and will click their mandibles or even bite if threatened, though the bite is effectively harmless to the human skin. The larva grows to about 120–130 mm, and pupates in an underground chamber. The pupa is smooth and glossy with the proboscis fused to the body, as in most Lepidoptera.
Acherontia atropos occurs throughout the Middle East and the Mediterranean region, much of Africa down to the southern tip, and increasingly as far north as southern Great Britain
13 Comments
Gracias Marta!
pues fue fortuito! nunca habia visto ninguna, pero hay amigos que me han comentado que si que las suelen ver. Todo depende de la flora que haya alrededor de donde vives
Wow! que chula! ¿es facil encontrarselas en nuestra region o fue fortuito? me encantaria verlas en vivo :-)
I seen many of people doing research on Metamorphosis..Really cool!
thank you Adarsha B S!
:)
Cool series!
thank you all!
:D
Very nice. I really like the name.
Great series - well done!
SOTD? :D Great shots! Love Sphinx cats.
Amazing picture!
Thank's! :)
Beautiful!!!
This is so cute.