Manduca quinquemaculatus
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Manduca quinquemaculata, the five-spotted hawkmoth, is a brown and gray hawk moth of the family Sphingidae. The caterpillar, often referred to as the tomato hornworm, can be a major pest in gardens; they get their name from a dark projection on their posterior end and their use of tomatoes as host plants. Tomato hornworms are closely related to (and sometimes confused with) the tobacco hornworm Manduca sexta and Blackburn's sphinx moth Manduca blackburni. This confusion arises because caterpillars of both species have similar morphologies and feed on the foliage of various plants from the family Solanaceae, so either species can be found on tobacco or tomato leaves. Because of this, the plant on which the caterpillar is found does not indicate its species.
M. quinquemaculata is found across North America and Australia. The tobacco hornworm, a close relative of the tomato hornworm, tends to dominate the south while tomato hornworms are more prevalent in the northern United States.
Tomato hornworms are known to eat various plants from the family Solanaceae, commonly feeding on tomato, eggplant, pepper, tobacco, moonflowers and potato. Females... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guadalupe Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Monterrey | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 7 | Salt Lake City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Denver | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Five-Spotted Hawk Moth sighting in Grand Canyon National Park on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 95th most-seen of the 143 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June–August and October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Five-Spotted Hawk Moth in Grand Canyon National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September and November–May, the lowest months.
Between 9 pm and midnight
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Five-Spotted Hawk Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
Among the best
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Five-Spotted Hawk Moth sightings, Grand Canyon National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Guadalupe Mountains National Park (United States, about 10%) and Big Bend National Park (United States, about 10%).
Same family: Sphingidae
The closest relatives of the Five-Spotted Hawk Moth that you can see in Grand Canyon National Park (family Sphingidae, Sphinx Moths) are White-Lined Sphinx (about 30%), One-Eyed Sphinx (about 10%) and Western Poplar Sphinx (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Five-Spotted Hawk Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Grand Canyon National Park (9 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
