One of our readers recently submitted a picture to us asking us what creature he saw before his eyes. This creature was about 4 inches in length and he found it outside. After close and careful research, we have found it to be a version of the Elephant Hawk-moth caterpillar. This caterpillar belongs to the Sphingidae family and they are found all over Europe, Russia, China, India, and Japan. These caterpillars pretty much live in any type of grassy or wooded areas. You can find them in forests and in gardens. The caterpillars come out in the months of July to September and the moths can be seen from May to July.

They do have a tendency to startle people because of the appearance of 4 eyes on their head and back. They also have a trunk –like snout that they use as a defense mechanism and when they are scared, they draw the trunk into their body for protection. One of the most interesting features about the hawk moth is that it has incredible night vision. Their eyes contain many light sensitive cells. They have a  wide scope of vision and can see quite a few different types of illumination.

These caterpillars are usually green in color, but have also been seen with brown skin and stripes that run the length of their bodies. When they turn into a moth, they are beautiful in color with shimmery greens and reds on their wings. The moths feed on nectar in plants such as honeysuckles and petunias and the caterpillars feed on hay and straw. Many owners of the fuchsia flower notice immediately when these caterpillars are out because their beautiful flowers have all been eaten by them. The moth grows up to have a 2 to 2.8 inch wingspan.

Many people are frightened by these little caterpillars because they do look a lot like a snake. The Elephant hawk-moth is not at all poisonous to human beings. It may look a little bit scary, but it is in no way deadly to humans. Its scary features are solely to help it to defend itself against birds and other animals that like to eat the caterpillars.

To recap, these caterpillars are very large in size and extremely strange looking. They are not poisonous to humans and they feed on hay, straw, and sometimes grass. When they are fully matured as moths, they turn into some of the most beautiful moths in nature. Their wings shimmer in the air as they fly and when you see them on your flowers, you will see just how amazing they are. They may scare you with their strange features, but not to worry, they are completely harmless. If you see them around your home, feel free to let them grow and live so you can see the colors they have as adults. If you have bats on your property, you may see the moths disappear because bats love to feed on them as adults.