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Wildlife Garden

What do sphinx moths love to lay eggs on?

10 years ago

I'm container growing tomatoes and noticed droppings on the ground. Then noticed that leaves were being devoured and went on to learn that it was tobacco hornworms:

http://tammysrecipes.com/tomato_hornworms

and the mother is a sphinx moth. Since it's a called a tobacco worm instead of the tomato worm, does that mean they like tobacco better than tomatoes? I'm wondering if I can plant a tobacco plant or two and the mothers will lay their eggs on them instead of on the tomatoes. Does anyone know if they like tobacco, or anything else, better than tomatoes?

Thanks for any help!
David

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Comments (8)

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
10 years ago
David, the tomato/tobacco hornworms can be found on pretty much any plant in the Solanaceae family.....tomatoes, potatoes, tobacco, pepper, eggplant, and even some Solanaceous weeds.

I predict that if you plant tobacco seeds you will have these hornworms on your tobacco AND tomato plants.

The key to preventing a lot of damage is to expect these insects to show up and to be on the lookout for the eggs. Smush them and you'll not have to worry.
nopeda123
Original Author
10 years ago
> The key to preventing a lot of damage is to expect these
> insects to show up and to be on the lookout for the
> eggs. Smush them and you'll not have to worry.

Where do you look for the eggs? I have enough trouble finding the 3 inch long worms. It only happened once this year, and I found 7 or 8 about 3 inches long and one that was only about an inch. I believe that got all of them because I've seen no more droppings and no more devourestation. But how do you find the eggs?
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I'm sorry, Khakitag, but it's a goner. It's been parasitized. While it may live to pupate, a moth will not emerge, but rather the parasites that have been consuming it's internal organs. It won't help to remove the cocoons of the parasite because they've already done the damage internally. I know it's sad, huh? If you look for eggs or hatchlings, and want to raise one, you'll have better luck at getting to them before the parasitic wasps do. The sphinx and silk moths are particularly susceptible to parasitization. I have about 20 Tersas I'm raising by hand right now because the predators were eating them. I guess that could be a good thing because I had just tons of eggs, and the Tersa mama is still laying eggs. She must have layed hundreds of them. Was your Tersa cat on hamelia patens (Texas Firebush)? Susan
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You are confused for some reason, are confusing the issue. Clearly, the OP had identified the Tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta. Do you not believe that someone new to the gardenweb or new to gardening can utilize the internet in a useful manner? I know...it seems to be rare, but I am proud of David. Sphingidae is a large family of moths. They are ALL correctly called Sphinx moths. Our OP plucked the caterpillars from his tomato plants and went to work finding a proper ID. The caterpillars of most (not all) Sphinx moths are hornworms and as a family, can be found on many kinds of plants. They tend to be host specific. Now, Kimmsr.....there are hornworms that feed on Solanaceous plants. I have never seen Tobacco hornworm on anything but a tomato or datura or pepper. I have also never seen nor heard of nor read of any other kind of hornworm (Sphingidae) on those plants. I hope that you have a better understanding, now. It can be confusing, for sure. But understanding the host /pest relationship with this particular moth family is extremely important. One can pretty much ID a hornworn if the host plant is identified....no picture of the caterpillar required. In this instance, we had an OP who was one step ahead of the usual 'newbie '. David used the internet. All he wanted to know is if he planted some tobacco plants would the Manduca sexta lay eggs on those and stay away from his tomatoes.
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
10 years ago
The eggs look like tiny, round pearls and are found on the upper and lower surface of the leaves. The adults deposit them one at a time, never in clusters.

They are very small....like the head of a pin. The baby caterpillar hatches from those eggs, which should tell you how long they have been feeding on your tomatoes to get that large. It pays to be observant.

My advice to you is to Google Tobacco Hornworm Eggs. You'll find many educational links with lots and lots of pictures. Knowledge is power.
surya55_gw
10 years ago
Rhizo,

I wonder if you can tell me what laid a cluster of small white eggs on the underside of a leaf on my tomato plant? I should've taken a picture but tossed it out quickly. The hornworm eggs are laid individually, right?

Thanks
Nerry
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
10 years ago
Nerry, T. Hornworm eggs are deposited individually. The cluster of white eggs could be from a number of possibilities. The exceedingly common brown marmorated stinkbug comes to mind first.

Unless some magnification is offered, it can be difficult to ID a cluster of 'small white eggs ' from a photo.
surya55_gw
10 years ago
OMG- You sure do your insects' laying habits:-) Do you know, I've been plagued with stinkbugs ALL summer. I chase them away and they come back... I'm pretty sure they belonged to one of those stinkies. Now another one, twice something's laid a brown chain of eggs onto the stems of my herbs, namely parsley and oregano. It looks like a row of hemstitch. Any ideas? Many thanks, Rhizo.
terrene
10 years ago
The Black Swallowtail caterpillar (Papilio polyxenes) lays eggs on parsley, but usually one at a time on the underside of the parsley leaves (as well as dill, fennel, rue, Zizia, carrot, etc.)
surya55_gw
10 years ago
Thanks Terrene but I think this was something else that laid those eggs...

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