One look at Daphnis nerii, the Oleander Hawk Moth, and you'll understand its other common name: the Army Green Moth. Its camouflage canvas covers nearly four inches of wingspan, and allows it to rest well hidden during the day. The species was first "deployed" to Hawaii in the 1970's, and though not found on the mainland, they are widespread throughout southern Europe, Africa, India, and Asia. Dusk and dawn appear to be the times the moth is most active, feeding on the nectar of plants such as jasmine and honeysuckle. The caterpillars have a preference for Nerium oleander, well-known as a poisonous plant due to the presence of cardiac glycosides in the leaves, compounds which affect the contractions of the heart. Other plants which can serve as host plants for the caterpillar include desert rose, vinca, and grape, among others. Daphnis nerii lays a single light-green, spherical egg, on both the upper and lower surfaces of the leaves. When the larvae first appear, they may be pale blue or bright yellow, but later instars are green in color, with blue and white eyespots near the head and a yellow tail horn- truly as striking as the adult! The final instars become browner. Pupation generally takes place on the ground, usually under leaf litter. In about ten days, the adults emerge and take to the wing. | |
56 Comments
Anna
12/17/2013 12:54:57 am
Greetings from the Philippines. Do you know if these oleander hawk moths are dangerous or poisonous when held? I have in my care, one pupa. Thank you.
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Jeanne
12/17/2013 03:08:09 pm
Hi Anna,
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Anna
8/5/2014 11:35:23 am
Just saw your reply today. I managed to release it in our garden once it transformed into a moth. It is quite beautiful, I might say. Thanks Jeanne.
Arlene
5/14/2015 04:39:37 am
Found one this morning under a hosta plant I was dividing. Decatur, GA
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TONY FOWLER
8/5/2014 04:34:02 am
SHOULD THIS MOTH BE FOUND IN AKANSAS
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Sheila
8/14/2015 12:16:30 pm
I live in Arkansas and I've never seen one here, but I recently visited Tunica Mississippi and that's where I saw one.
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carrie lamm
8/5/2014 03:17:13 pm
How abt Iowa
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shonah
8/9/2014 01:16:10 pm
everything i have read says this species of moth is found in parts of asia, africa & europe. i saw one earlier in a parking lot on long island (NY). have they migrated to the states?
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shonah
8/9/2014 01:23:27 pm
just found this:
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Carol
9/22/2014 01:32:12 am
Northern Cyprus has them they are beautiful !
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Julian
10/8/2014 12:45:22 pm
really wonderful creatures. They are natural trimmers or should i say "barbers" for my overgrowing periwinkle plant.
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Cat
12/29/2014 03:20:21 pm
I live on the Big Island of Hawaii. One of these beautiful Creatures showed up at my house at Christmas..... He didn't want to leave my napkin or my finger but I did deposit him in a plant outside tonight. He was quite docile until I did. I have oleanders along the side if my house....?i suppose he came from there??!!
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Paula
4/6/2015 04:15:31 pm
Hi Jeanne, thank you for your blog. You helped me identify the Oleander Hawk Moth I just found in my garden. It was on a desert rose plant. I live in Oman and we don't get many moths or butterflies here at all, so this is very exciting! I would love to watch it change with my son. Do you have any advice? Many thanks. Paula x
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Sheila
8/14/2015 12:34:15 pm
My husband and I took a vacation from LITTLE ROCK, Ar. to the Casino strip in Tunica Mississippi, after stopping at a gas station I saw what I thought was a very big butterfly. I immediately took a couple of snapshots to send to Farmers Almanac they searched and found out my butterfly is call Oleander Hawk Moth thank you guys for identifying it for me.
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Cclin
9/27/2015 08:37:15 pm
I live in the Philippines, we have 8 very large hawk moth caterpillars in our garden some about 3 inches long they grow very fast and strip the plants bare, we are very excited to see the moth even though we will have to buy new plants when they have gone
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Kishan
1/13/2016 09:33:55 am
I just googled this moth that I found in my bedroom. And was confused between lime moth and army moth, but I am positive that it is the later. Specially when it says on this blog that this beautiful moth is found in India (I live in Jharkhand state). I will set it free tomorrow morning( it will have to spend the night inside a shoe box).
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Danny
7/16/2016 11:12:42 pm
I found one on my screen door tonight in Addison,IL. An amazing creature.
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Michael
8/30/2016 07:44:50 pm
I just saw one on the window of the coin shop in Downtown Honolulu, Hawaii. Looks identical.
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Shari
9/7/2016 09:46:07 am
I just saw a caterpillar at home depot. It was so beautiful with those big blue eyes!
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Rahul
3/21/2017 12:09:22 am
I have one of these 'parked' on one of my living room curtains, in powai (Mumbai), India. It's a beaut. will let her stay put while she plans her sojourn..
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Ben van der Berg
4/5/2017 11:04:53 am
Hi Guys. Found one of these moths at my front door against the wall this morning. We stay in Johannesburg, South Africa.
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Rafiq
5/3/2017 09:10:37 am
Hi. I found 4 of them (maybe more) in my garden and kept them in enclosure under good care. How long do I have to keep feeding them until they turn brown and become a pupea?
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basyong
5/27/2017 07:01:35 am
Is it ok to keep it in a jar completely with the leaves that it likes? My jar is glass and wide complete with air holes. I want to observe it until it becomes a moth.
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Pam
7/4/2017 02:33:54 pm
Hi, Letting my dog out last night I saw one of these moths in my porch. I caught it but didn't have the heart to keep it although it seemed content to just sit on my glove and look at me. After 10 minutes I took it to the door and let it go. It was so beautiful. I am in Long Island N.Y.
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Bill
7/28/2017 07:03:56 am
I had one in my car stayed with me all day until I came home from work. Took some pics then set it free. Large female beautiful. My wife and I have never seen one like this before. Very cool!!!
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Bill
7/28/2017 07:09:08 am
Bill again, Sorry forgot to mention, found her in CT
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Inesa
8/18/2017 03:44:28 pm
I saw one of these magnificent creatures for the first and only time so far, resting on the outer side of my car door, one evening, a few years ago. My friend and I were simply mesmerized by its beauty and it was an extraordinary experience as I had no idea there are such large moths in Cyprus. This happened in Southern Cyprus, Ayia Napa. It had an approximate size of 3.5 - 4 inches width.
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John
8/25/2017 11:33:08 pm
I read on here that it's not found on the main land but I just found a green army moth here in Hampton, Virginia. I took a photograph of it before it flew away. It is the most beautiful moth I have ever seen.
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Charlene
9/4/2017 08:06:15 pm
I live in Ohio and saw one on a gas pump while I was fueling my car. I took a photo of it because I had never seen one before. I almost wiped it away I thought it was a leaf until it moved.
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Jackie.
7/11/2018 12:50:41 pm
Fond one on our porch today. Beautiful coloring. Found in missouri
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Jody
7/15/2018 09:49:28 am
I found one on my back porch today in Piedmont, OK. Absolutely beautiful!
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Cyndi
8/3/2018 09:20:57 am
I live in Owensboro, Ky. I found this oleander Hawaiin Hawk moth on my mother's back door at 1:30 CT. I took pictures of it and put in a container to capture more pictures . I then let it climb onto my finger and placed it back the door. It was very unique and caught my attention. I've never seen this type of moth. It's now 11:20 a.m. CT and it is still where I placed it. Thank you for all the information n this moth, very interesting.
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lyle
8/8/2018 07:03:09 pm
good day ,I found a brown army looking moth just like the Hawaiin hawk moth on the outside tap of my house and I am situated in Cape Town, South Africa.
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Alicia Kamahele
11/9/2018 11:37:59 pm
I live in East Honolulu (Hawaii Kai) and was pleasantly surprised to find a green army moth on my screen door. It is the most beautiful and striking moth I have ever seen.
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Richard Kiyabu
9/20/2019 01:55:50 pm
Thanks, Now I know what that was. The moth was resting by my front door in Hawaii Kai and I could actually get it to climb on my finger
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E Lipinski
7/23/2020 04:08:36 pm
Have one on my porch in Pennsylvania right now.
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L Weiss
8/2/2020 02:09:28 pm
Saw one today on a porch in Eastern PA, first time ever. Lots of shrubs - Weigelia, evergreens, ornamental variegated shrubs (maybe an Oleander, no flowers) and lots of rose of sharon. Beautiful.
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Mary
7/18/2021 01:37:39 am
Saw one here in Muncie IN
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Phoebe
8/11/2021 03:53:10 pm
I was in AYIA NAPA, cyprus and came home to find an extra friend! An Olenader Hawk Moth was sat in my room showing off his amazing camouflage body. 10/10 moth
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Sandy
9/16/2022 02:14:28 am
Neighbor found one on the street while on a run. Honolulu, Hawaii. I know in this neighborhood we have Isabella Grape, Vinca Desert Rose, Gardenia, all plants I read that the caterpillars like.
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Shelly Caldeira
5/9/2023 07:24:19 pm
One visited me this morning in Kailua, Oahu. It was flying around our tiny front yard and landed in my car. It freaked me out at 1st. I got a great picture of him, soooooo groovy looking!
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Peter Michelmore
6/28/2023 07:29:51 pm
Just found three Oleander Hawk moths in Kailua, Oahu. They ate an entire plant in one day. Very aggressive
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Roger
7/17/2023 07:14:59 pm
We are in Kahana on Maui and have a good size Desert Rose in a large pot on our Lanai.
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Natasha Tozer-Martin
9/17/2023 04:16:38 am
Just found a larve in Cyprus near northern boarder the dog was perplexed and alarmed by the strange intruder and went beserk said intruder safely located away from the animals in our oliander
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