Smerinthus caecus Ménétriés, 1857, Enumeratio Corporum Anim. Mus. imp. Acad. Sci. Petropolitanae (Ins. Lepid.) 2 (Lepid. Heterocera): 135. Type locality: [Russia, Chitinskaya Oblast,] "Dahuria?".
Wingspan: 50--70mm. Sexually dimorphic. Very like a small S. ocellata, but with incomplete small black ocelli containing two small blue streaks. The foretibia lacks an apical thorn. Variation even less than in S. ocellata, mainly consisting of differences in the amount of blue in the ocelli, and in the intensity of forewing markings.
A species of mixed forests of conifers and deciduous trees, and deciduous woodland in valley bottoms. Females active from 23.00h until 01.20h, males from 23.00h until 03.50 (Izerskiy, 1999b).
China: v (Jiguanshan); vi (Great Khingan Mountains, Zalantun/Butha Qi); vii (Hailin); vii (Heilongjiang); vii (Jilin); vii (Liaoning); vii-viii (Lalin), viii (Lesser Khingan Mountains, ??Chesig-Chin). Mongolia: 30.vii (Khalkhin-Gol). North Korea: vii (Jueul). South Korea: 2.vii [(unstated locality]). Japan: 13.vi-26.vii (Hokkaido). Russia: 26.v-2.ix (Primorskiy Kray); vi (Kurile Islands); 15.vi-24.vii (Siberia); vii (Amurskaya); 11.vii (Transbaikalia); 17.vii (Sakhalin Island).
Mainly univoltine; late May to early August, depending on latitude and altitude. Commonest from mid June until mid July. Izerskiy (1999b) states that in years when a partial second brood occurs in the Russian Far East, moths can be found in May\June and in August\September. This supports the claim of Yang (1978) that S. caecus has two generations a year in China.
Park et al. (1999) give late May until mid August as the flight period in Korea.
OVUM: Greenish-whith, oval (2mm).
LARVA: Full-fed 60--70mm. Dichromatic; bluish white and yellow-green. Resembles that of S. ocellata. Both colour forms of S. caecus have distinct black markings on the dorsal surface of the horn, base of the claspers, prolegs, and ventral surface of the head. The white body tubercles are round and blunt, unlike in S. ocellata, where they are sharp and pointed.
PUPA: 31--35mm. Almost identical to that of S. ocellata. The overwintering stage.
Larval hostplants. Recorded on Populus in China (Yang, 1978; Chu & Wang, 1980) and on Salix in Primorskiy Kray, Russia (Graeser, 1888). Li & Guo (1990) give Salix and Populus alba for Shanxi.
Izerskiy (1999b) states that the main hosts in the Russian Far East are species of Salix, less often Populus tremula and Betula.
Recorded in Korea on Populus maximowiczii (Park et al., 1999).
Unknown.
China: Nei Mongol (Great Khingan Mountains, Zalantun/Butha Qi); Heilongjiang (Hailin; Lalin; Lesser Khingan Mountains, ??Chesig-Chin); Jilin; Liaoning (Jiguanshan); Hebei; Shanxi (Taiyuan; Taigu; Qixian).
Mongolia: Khalkhin-Gol.
North Korea: Kangwon Prov. (Keumgang-san); South Pyongan Prov. (Pyongyang); South Hamgyong Prov. (Seokwang Temple; Hagal; Gyungsung); North Hamgyong Prov. (Jueul, 1500m).
South Korea: Seoul; Kyonggi Prov. (Gwangleung; Chukryong-san); Kangwon Prov. (Daeryong-san; Gwangduk-san; Seolak-san; Yangyang; Odae-san; Woljeong Temple; Baekduk-san; Taebek-san; Yanggu; Bongmyung-ri; Bangtae-san; Dunnae; Chiak-san); South Cholla Prov. (Mokpo); North Kyongsang Prov. (Sobaek-san; Cheongyang-san; Seongju); South Kyongsang Prov. (Gibaek-san; Hamyang).
Japan: Hokkaido (Kushiro; Tokachi); northern Honshu.
Russia: Siberia (Tomsk; Khromovka; Kireevsk; Kolomino; Bazoy; Bakchar; Tyul'ka; Novosibirsk; Kayly; Shirokaya; Chingisy; Abaza; Khandyrgey; West Sayan Mts.; East Sayan Mts., 2000m; Malchan Mts., Borochojewa, 800m; Alaevo; Irkutsk.); Tuva ASSR (Khondyrgey; Erzin); Transbaikalia (Kurleya Village); Amurskaya (Teply Klyuch); Khabarovsk Kray (Slavyanka; Novoaleksandrovka; Khabarovsk; Duki); Kamchatka; Primorskiy Kray (Kaymanovka; Kamenushka; Anuchino; Ussuriysk; Khasan; Kedrovaya Pad nature reserve); Kurile Islands; Sakhalin Island (Shebunino).
Ranges across Russia, from St. Petersburg and Moscow, to the Pacific coast islands (Chistyakov, 1988; Danner et al., 1998), and south to the Altai Mountains (Danner et al., 1998), Mongolia (Chistyakov, 1988), northeastern China (southwest as far as Shanxi; Li & Guo, 1990), South Korea (Kim et al., 1982) and Japan (Hokkaido; northern Honshu). The European distribution is uncertain due to confusion with Smerinthus o. ocellata (Linnaeus), as demonstrated by the history of its discovery in Europe and Siberia. Djakonov (1911) recounted how Duske collected two specimens in the Ural Mountains in the 1890s, but other entomologists discounted this. A further specimen was captured in 1895 by Keller at Aleksino (Tula district), while four more moths were caught in June 1908 at Ekaterinburg (Djakonov, 1911). Soon after, Filipjev (1912) reported rearing an adult female from a larva found at Torbino (Novgorod district), while Sheljuzhko (1924) noted an adult female captured on 22.v.1915 at Belebej-Aksakovo (Ufa district). He speculated that either S. caecus was always present in Europe and simply overlooked (the view of Djakonov), or that it only recently spread west from Siberia (the view of Filipjev). The latter view is probably correct (see below).
Holarctic; Palaearctic (both eastern and western). Pleistocene refuge: Monocentric -- Manchurian.
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