The wooden moth

At first glance, the Tersa Sphinx moth (Xylophanes tersa tersa) looks to have been carved from wood and stuck on the wall like a child's toy. Photographed this morning hanging on the outside of our IMAX Dome Theater this Tersa is alive, well, and waiting for night to fall.

If you break down its scientific name: "xylo" is Greek for wood and "Phanes" was the golden winged being that hatched from the Cosmic Egg that was the source of the universe. In myth Phanes personifies light from chaos.

Tersa Sphinx moths can be found from Florida north to Massachusetts and have a wingspan around 3 inches. Their larvae have either a green or brown form dotted with eyespots and terminate with a single spiked protrusion. They can consume many types of plants including pentas and Firebush (Hamelia patens) which are both common butterfly garden plants in Florida. The larva bury themselves in leaf litter or loose soil and mulch to form their pupa which will eventually wiggle back to the surface for the adult moth can emerge after metamorphosis.

Adults can be seen flying right at dusk and searching for nectar plants, especially honeysuckle. Due to their large size and hovering form of flying that are often mistaken for hummingbirds at a distance.