Theretra alecto

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Theretra alecto is a butterfly (night butterfly) from the family of swarms (Sphingidae). The second part of the scientific name, the artepitheton, derives from Alekto (“the never resting”), a goddess of Greek mythology. The range of the species includes large parts of the Southern Palearctic and Orientalis. The caterpillars feed mainly on vines (Vitis) and maiden vines (Parthenocissus) and can cause damage if mass occurrences in agriculture are observed in places.

Features

Folders

The folders have a wingspan of 75 to 106 millimeters. They have brown-colored forewings with a fine, oblique, dark submarginal line from the inner edge of the wing to the tip of the wing (apex). The hind wings are predominantly pink, basal they are black and in the anal angle they wear a white spot. The coloration is different in intensity, in particular depending on the environmental conditions which caterpillar and pupa are found, but otherwise not very variable. A number of forms have been described: T. alecto f. transcaspica O. Bang-Haas has an orange-red submarginal line on the forewings, T. alecto f. cretica Boisduval is clearly paleer in colour and has a yellow-brown tint on the forewings and orange-red hindwings. The differences between the forms result mainly, but not exclusively, from their range. The former is described from Turkmenistan, T. alecto f. cretica occurs mainly in the arid and hot regions of southeastern Europe and the Middle East.

The feelers are white on the top, yellow on the underside. The thorax is brown and has a white line on the sides. This runs either from the tip of the head to the base of the wings, or merges into the primary color of the underside of the body and the sides of the body, which is equal to the color of the undersides of the wings. The top of the body is the same color as the top of the wings.

Caterpillar

In the last stage, the caterpillars have a body length of 80 to 110 millimeters with a body diameter of about 11 millimeters. Your anal horn reaches a length of 10 millimeters.

In the first stage, the caterpillars are colored pale yellow and have a long, straight, black anal horn. After eating on the food plant, the body color becomes green, as it is also in the second stage.

In the third stage, the head and the body are green, a dark green back strip as well as a white strip on both sides of the back (dorsolateral) being formed. In the dorsolateral stripes on the fifth to eleventh segment are eye spots. The eye spots on the fifth segment are larger than the rest. They are either reddish or blue and black bordered. The long, thin anal horn is basal red or orange, otherwise colored black. From the third caterpillar stage, individuals also appear, d