---
title: "Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth"
description: "Hyles euphorbiae — Insetti e ragni. Hyles euphorbiae, the spurge hawk-moth, is a European moth of the family Sphingidae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/it/animal/leafy-spurge-hawkmoth
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth

> Hyles euphorbiae — Insetti e ragni. Hyles euphorbiae, the spurge hawk-moth, is a European moth of the family Sphingidae.

- Scientific name: *Hyles euphorbiae*
- Category: `insects` (Insetti e ragni)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 15697
- Wikidata: [Q913451](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q913451)
- iNaturalist taxon: [70071](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/70071)

## Names

- en: Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth
- de: Wolfsmilchschwärmer
- es: Esfinge del euforbio
- fr: Sphinx de l'euphorbe
- nl: Wolfsmelkpijlstaart
- pl: Zmrocznik wilczomleczek

## Countries with the most observations

FR (2555), US (2532), ES (1865), IT (1350), CA (1326), DE (716), CH (641), RU (624), AT (606), UA (399), HU (296), PT (275)

## Summary

Hyles euphorbiae, the spurge hawk-moth, is a European moth of the family Sphingidae. This hawk moth is used as an agent of biological pest control against the noxious weed leafy spurge (Euphorbia virgata), but usually only in conjunction with other agents. The larvae consume the leaves and bracts of the plant. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyles_euphorbiae

## Photo

![Leafy Spurge Hawkmoth](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/leafy-spurge-hawkmoth/medium.jpg)

Photo: Liviu Chiriac · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/355093930

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/leafy-spurge-hawkmoth?lang=it` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).