Modest Sphinx Moth

Sarah, I think we have a common consense yours being Pachysphinx modesta, so, please, change your ID.

I agree, for me the range is not always a reliable criteria, mostly due to incomplete data. Not to forget that usual range might be extended and new dightings for an area were reported. However, in this case I trust bugguide as a key database for the US and Occidentalis is definitely out of the range.

@bayucca
Other species of (North American) sphinx moth have, on occasion, been found far out of their usual range. Apparently my original assessment of the example in the above photo was [more] speculative than I'd -
perhaps intended.
=]

@GCDruenn: Thanks for your input. Occidentalis and Modesta are both quite variable. I still think it is Modesta, mostly and this might be more important than the phenotype, due to the range. Connecticut is in my opinion too far in the east to qualify for Occidentalis. What do you think about the range?

Sphinx
Pachysphinx occidentalis | modesta are species of Hawk Moth. According to BugGuide there are: [Adult: 2 color forms – forewing of light form pale yellowish-brown, darker in median area; forewing of dark form of Western Poplar Sphinx similar to Modest Sphinx ( P. modesta ) but with darker lines that contrast more against ground color.]
- WTB

It is Pachysphinx modesta, the other Pachysphinx occidentalis is not found in your area, only in the western part of US.
http://bugguide.net/node/view/1252970/bg...

Nice spotting! I would guess it's a modest sphinx moth because of the location, but other than that I don't know how to differentiate between the modest sphinx and big poplar sphinx.