140 JOHN B. SMITH. 



PHIL, AM PEL, US Han 



Sill. Journ. 1839, v. 36, 286, 298. 



Head rather large, free and prominent, smoothly scaled. Tongue 

 about as long as the body ; palpi ascending, pressed close to the front ; 

 eyes large, not lashed ; antennae slender, fusiform, ciliate in the % , 

 simple in the 9 , with a regular curve at tij), or somewhat abruptly 

 bent forming a curved hook. Thorax stout, untufted, moderately 

 extended in front of the base of primaries. Abdomen large, cylin- 

 drical and tapering to a point, entirely untufted, the segments armed 

 with spinules on the posterior margin. Tibite not spinose, the pos- 

 terior longest and strongest ; middle pair with two long, unequal 

 terminal spurs, posterior with two j)airs. Primaries with eleven 

 veins, the arrangement of the typical form. Secondaries with the 

 cross-vein closing the cell obliquely sinuate; 5 nuich nearer to 4 

 than 6 ; o, 4 and 5 nearly equidistant. Primaries with the outer 

 mai'gin entire, obliquely rounded, or somewhat excavate between the 

 apex and the end of vein 4, the sexes differing somewhat in this 

 l^oint. Secondaries slightly produced on vein lb, elsewhere entire. 



The supra-anal plate of the S is trigonate, depressed above ; the 

 hook is slender, elongate, acute at tip ; the inferior process stouter, 

 about half the length of the superior process. The side pieces are 

 rather variable in form, the tip always obtusely rounded ; a single, 

 rather short, stout, curved, abruptly pointed hook at the middle of 

 the inferior margin, forms the clasper. 



The genus is very readily distinguished by the curved antenme, 

 large size, the somewhat pointed primaries, and the produced anal 

 angle of the secondaries. The larvje have the head small and 

 globose, the anterior segments attenuated and retractile into the third 

 which is much swollen. The anal horn is wanting in the mature 

 larva, its |)lace indicated by a shining lenticular tubercle. They are 

 clumsy looking, and in repose, or when disturbed, the anterior seg- 

 ments are retracted into the third, causing it to apjiear truncated or 

 bulbous anteriorly, and at the same time the l>ody is thrown into the 

 typical Sphinx posture. 



The transformations are subterranean. The pupa is cylindriconic, 

 head-case distinct or prominent, tongue-case not apparent. 



The larva are all vine feeders, and are not uncommon. Those 

 of achemou and pandoni^ have an economic imjiortance, and the 



