We spotted the same caterpillar last year here and we have concluded that it is a Poplar Hawk Moth Laothoe populi Caterpillar. There are many similar pictures available on the internet.
Susan and Tim's comments last time both confirm this.
Interestingly we have never seen the actual Popular Hawk Moth and I am sure we would have noticed it.
Image from http://www.essexfieldclub.org.uk/portal/p/Picture/s/Poplar+Hawk-Moth+2.
7 comments:
This isn't a Poplar Hawkmoth caterpillar -- your photos show a blue 'tail' which the Poplar Hawk doesn't have. It's definitely a Hawkmoth of some sort, but I'd have to check my guide to ID it.
Lime Hawkmoth Mimas tilae?
One day we might get one right. What would we do without Susan, thanks.
I have just looked at the post...
yep...
Lime Hawk it is not, Susan...
sorry.... have to disagree.
It has NO red above the pale stripes.
It looks more like an Eyed Hawkmoth...
especially with the horizontal stripe coming back from the head...
the "eye" spots along the flank look too large for a Lime, too.
I wasn't sure about my ID, hence the ? I didn't look it up, just guessed.
So current thinking is the Eyed Hawkmoth as the post last year... Very difficult this ID business. Think in future we will just say we saw something!!!
To be honest C&E....
these three hawkmoth caterpillars and the Oak are all extremely similar...
the Poplar and the Oak are horribly alike...
and they don't just feed on the trees they are named after!!
So you really have to look hard...
especially at the tail.
Yellow is Oak or Poplar...
Blue for Lime or Eyed...
but Lime has yellow underneath...
AAAAAAGH!!
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