Observation date: August 10, 2019
Submitted by: pnesterenko
Specimen type: Photograph
Observation notes: Host plant is Mountain Mohagany (Cercocarpus montanus). Estimated length of caterpillar 5 cm and 1.5 cm diameter.
Status: Resident
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: October 13, 2019
Coordinator notes: I could be wrong but I am pretty confident this is a near mature larva of Glover Silkmoth, especially since it is in a mountain location and it is feeding on Mountain Mahogany. I use to rear H. cecropia since they were at least once prevalent in the suburbs of eastern Denver and it looks a little different than what I remember cecropia looked like (the spiked "clubs" on the front of the head were larger and more red I think). Anyway, certainly one of the better submissions of moth larvae, most of which I cannot identify. Nice photo too. Thanks, Mike
PS I see in the Powell-Opler book Moths of Western North America, gloveri is placed as a subspecies of Hyalophora columbia. Glover's Silkmoth has similarity to H. cecropia.
