White-lined Sphinx Moth On My Gate

Pictured here is an example of a White-lined Sphinx Moth taken in late April 2017. The gate is weathered western red cedar bolted to a galvanized steel frame. This moth was hiding beneath the crossbar on the backside of the gate, right where I grab the gate to close it. Couldn’t miss it, right? It was a cold day and I had time to go get my camera because this guy wasn’t going anywhere. He was trying very hard to be invisible. It almost worked.

The identifying characters beyond the large size of this moth are:
six white longitudinal stripes on the thorax, a tan colored band on the forewing that extends from wingbase to wingtip, and a black hindwing with a reddish-pink band in its middle (not pictured).

This is a large, beautiful moth and I was lucky enough to find one waiting for nightfall in a spot I could easily photograph. I don’t go out with a camera at night when these guys are active, so it is fun to catch one “hiding in plain sight”.