Binomial name: Cephonodes hylas (Linnaeus, 1771)Īdults of Cephonodes hylas deposit their eggs directly on their respective host plants, one or few eggs at a time.

Special notes: Hatchling larvae are very small be careful not to lose them! Put them on a potted plant or in a sleeve so you do not have to change them until they are big enough to see for the naked eye, or use a magnifier.

Prefered climate: Subtropical / tropical found in the hotter and more humid kind of environments, but can survive colder winters with snowfall and frost in some localities.

Pupation: Subterranean (burrows in soil).

Generations: Multivoltine – can have several generations.

Polyphagous: Yes, but prefers a wide variety of (sub)tropical genera of Rubiaceae plants has also been recorded on a few kinds of plants from other families such as Olaceae, Caprifoliaceae, Apocynaceae.

Natural range: Has a very wide range large parts of Africa, Australia and Asia including but not limited to Angola, Benin, Burkina Fasso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, DRCongo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Kenya, La Reunion, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, possibly, but not well confirmed in a very small part of Russia.

Examples of recorded food plants include Coffee (Coffea sp.), Gardenia (Gardenia jasminoides ), Snowberry (Symphoricarpos sp.), Privet (Ligustrum sp.) Honeysuckle (Lonicera sp.), Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis), Adina sp., Guettarda speciosa, Pavetta mollissima , Haldina, Mitragyna, Mussaenda, Morelia senegalensis , Canthium odoratum, Randia, Catunaregam, Wendlandia, Ixora, Tricalysia dubia, Kraussia lanceolata, Ervatamia angustisepala and quite likely many, many more.

Host plants: Generally prefers various Rubiaceae plants, but also plants from other families.

Pairing difficulty: 6.5/10 (Archieving copulations).Rearing difficulty: 5/10 (From egg to pupa).Difficulty rating: Average (Not too hard to breed).These cocoons are produced in the foliage of the host plants, in leaf litter on the floor or in narrow crevices.Ĭephonodes hylas, adult – when freshly emerged, the wings still have scales that fall off after the first (=maiden) flight. However, unlike the cocoons of many types of silkmoths, the exterior of Cephonodes hylas cocoons is not just made of silk they heavily rely on leaf litter, twigs, earth and dirt that they spin together with silk. Fully grown larvae do not burrow underground to pupate like most Sphingidae instead, they are one of the few Sphingidae species that can spin a cocoon. The pupae, however, can overwinter, which is exactly what they do in more temperate climates, where they can survive mild to colder winters, including snowfall and frost. In the tropical regions, they are most likely nearly continuously brooded, producing two to four generations in one year. The larvae can be raised on it from egg to adult, however.ĭepending on the geographical location they seem to have one to several generations a year it mainly depends on if the local climate allows it or not. It is unclear if privet (Ligustrum sp.) is a ‘true’ host plant utilised in the wild or simply a substitute host plant, since it is a convient food plant commonly used by hobbyists in the hobby moth breeding scene. (Olaceae) is another food plant it has been recorded on on the wild. It has been reported that larvae also feed from a few kinds of non-Rubiaceae plants such as Ervatamia angustisepala (Apocynaceae), Lonicera (Caprifoliaceae) – and suprisingly Ligustrum sp. They feed from flowers in mid-air by hovering above them and extending their proboscis to access the nectar. Much like most members of the hummingbird hawkmoth subfamily, the adult moths can beat their wings in a very rapid fashion and appear to float in a hummingbird like way they are able to hover, make sudden and sharp turns and can even fly backwards.

The moths are day active and rest at night.

For this reason they are also encountered in suburban habitats, where the adults are famously seen visiting flowers in gardens and parks. Randia, Catunaregam, Wendlandia, Ixora and Kraussia lanceolata – the list includes a few plants host of (agri)cultural value such as Gardenia, and Coffea (coffee). The caterpillars mainly feed from a wide range of Rubiaceae plants, including but not limited to Adina sp., Guettarda speciosa, Pavetta mollissima , Haldina, Mitragyna, Mussaenda, Morelia senegalensis , Canthium odoratum. Cephonodes hylas, known as the ‘coffeebean hawkmoth’ or ‘pellucid hawkmoth’, is a type of clear winged hummingbird hawkmoth (Macroglossinae) with a large distribution found throughout the warmer parts of the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

Pellucid hawk moth