Just in time for Moth Night, an NJMC colleague brought in a Tobacco Hornworm for everyone to admire. The hornworm had been devouring his tomato plants. (It is not a nice caterpillar.)

This is why it is called a hornworm. The horn is located at the worm’s aft.

With a little research, we discovered that the hornworm, nicknamed “Joey” by a fellow staffer, could someday turn into an awesome Tobacco Hawkmoth.

We are now trying to keep Joey alive so he can live out his dream of being a hawkmoth or, failing that, at least hanging around until Moth Night, where he is scheduled to appear.

(Moth Night is from 8:30 to 11 p.m. next Monday night, July 22, and features bright lights and folks from National Moth Week! It’s free and family-friendly.)

We are posting a photo of a Tobacco Hawkmoth, courtesy of bugguide.net, below. A link to more info on the Tobacco Hornworm is here. (Thank you, Sue Lewicki of the MEC, for your help!)