On 13/08/2013 11:13, Chris Hogg wrote:
On Tue, 13 Aug 2013 11:50:48 +0200, David in Normandy
wrote:

Just found a huge caterpillar while harvesting some potatoes.
Never seen one this big in my life. Anyone recognise it or know what
butterfly or moth variety it belongs to?

http://s288.photobucket.com/user/uyq...illar.jpg.html

Normally I kill caterpillars but didn't have the heart to kill this
magnificent beast despite it scoffing my potato foliage; so I released
it elsewhere in the garden.

Poplar hawk moth http://tinyurl.com/n6ypsc9 or possibly the Privet
hawk moth http://tinyurl.com/kun92z2. Certainly a hawk moth of some
sort.




Death's Head Hawk Moth, whose caterpillar feeds on the potato plant.

http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/s...ontia-atropos/

--
Spider
from high ground in SE London
gardening on clay