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| Hawk moths Temporal range:
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| Convolvulus hawk-moth, Agrius convolvuli | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Superfamily: | Bombycoidea |
| Family: | Sphingidae Latreille, 1802 |
| Type species | |
| Sphinx ligustri | |
| Subfamilies | |
| Diversity | |
| About 200 genera, roughly 1,450 species | |
The Sphingidae are a family of moths commonly called sphinx moths, also colloquially known as hawk moths, with many of their caterpillars known as hornworms. It includes about 1,450 species.[1] It is best represented in the tropics, but species are found in every region.[2] They are moderate to large in size and are distinguished among moths for their agile and sustained flying ability, similar enough to that of hummingbirds as to be reliably mistaken for them.[2] Their narrow wings and streamlined abdomens are adaptations for rapid flight. The family was named by French zoologist Pierre André Latreille in 1802.
Some hawk moths, such as the hummingbird hawk-moth or the white-lined sphinx, hover in midair while they feed on nectar from flowers, so are sometimes mistaken for hummingbirds. This hovering capability is only known to have evolved four times in nectar feeders: in hummingbirds, certain bats, hoverflies, and these sphingids[3] (an example of convergent evolution). Sphingids have been studied for their flying ability, especially their ability to move rapidly from side to side while hovering, called "swing-hovering" or "side-slipping". This is thought to have evolved to deal with ambush predators that lie in wait in flowers.[3]
Sphingids are some of the faster flying insects; some are capable of flying at over 5.3 m/s (19 km/h).[4] They have wingspans from 4 cm (1+1⁄2 in) to over 10 cm (4 in).
- ^ van Nieukerken; et al. (2011). "Order Lepidoptera Linnaeus, 1758. In: Zhang, Z.-Q. (Ed.) Animal biodiversity: An outline of higher-level classification and survey of taxonomic richness" (PDF). Zootaxa. 3148: 212–221. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3148.1.41.
- ^ a b Scoble, Malcolm J. (1995): The Lepidoptera: Form, Function and Diversity (2nd edition). Oxford University Press & Natural History Museum London. ISBN 0-19-854952-0
- ^ a b Kitching, Ian J (2002). "The phylogenetic relationships of Morgan's Sphinx, Xanthopan morganii (Walker), the tribe Acherontiini, and allied long-tongued hawkmoths (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae, Sphinginae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 135 (4): 471–527. doi:10.1046/j.1096-3642.2002.00021.x.
- ^ Stevenson, R.; Corbo, K.; Baca, L.; Le, Q. (1995). "Cage size and flight speed of the tobacco hawkmoth Manduca sexta" (PDF). The Journal of Experimental Biology. 198 (Pt 8): 1665–1672. doi:10.1242/jeb.198.8.1665. PMID 9319572. Retrieved 10 August 2012.