Poplar Hawkmoth Caterpillar
This is a lovely photograph of a well-grown larva of the Poplar Hawkmoth, Laothoe populi. It was captured by Mark Snowden in his garden earlier this month.
This is the only hawkmoth we seem to have in Assynt on a regular basis. You can see the distinctive yellow-striped ‘horn’ at it’s tail end which, together with the rest of body pattern, is diagnostic. It is not usually so destructive as the puss moth on our native aspens.
A.Summers