Ello Sphinx

Erinnyis ello · Order: Lepidoptera · Family: Sphingidae

Also called: Cassava hornworm, Ello Sphinx Moth

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Ello Sphinx
Photo: unknown, CC0

The Ello Sphinx can be parasitized by a braconid wasp called Microplitis figueresi. It lives from Argentina through Central America up to Nevada in the United States.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Its range extends from Argentina through Central America to Nevada, USA.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 30 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Florida, Texas, Arizona, California, Illinois, Colorado, Michigan, New Mexico.

Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.

Source: GBIF

Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist

Months it is reported in the US

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Source: GBIF

More photos

Ello Sphinx photo 3
Photo: unknown, CC0
Ello Sphinx photo 4
Photo: Luiz Puodzius, CC BY
Ello Sphinx photo 5
Photo: Andrew Meeds, CC BY
Ello Sphinx photo 6
Photo: Teá Montagna, CC BY

Same family (Sphingidae)

White-lined SphinxWhite-lined SphinxHyles lineataDamages trees, gardens or cropsEurasian Hummingbird HawkmothEurasian Hummingbird HawkmothMacroglossum stellatarumSnowberry ClearwingSnowberry ClearwingHemaris diffinisCarolina SphinxCarolina SphinxManduca sextaDamages trees, gardens or cropsHummingbird ClearwingHummingbird ClearwingHemaris thysbeDamages trees, gardens or cropsElephant HawkmothElephant HawkmothDeilephila elpenor

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erinnyis_ello

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.