Hawk Moth (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae) Richness in an Agricultural Ecosystem Associated with Tropical Deciduous Forest Fragments in Veracruz, Mexico

Sphingidae (Latreille) is one of the largest families of tropical moths, with important roles in herbivory and pollination and great species richness. Although Veracruz has the largest number of hawkmoths recorded in Mexico, there are few studies and no research reported from the low deciduous forest or on mature stages in agricultural areas. This study aimed to evaluate the species richness of Sphingidae in an agricultural ecosystem associated with tropical deciduous forest fragments in Veracruz, Mexico. The study period for this work covers January 2023 to December 2024. Insects were collected using nocturnal capture methods with light traps from 18:00 to 06:00 h once each month. The results are equivalent to 288 effective hours of sampling, allowing the collection of 342 hawkmoths, representing 47 species from 22 genera, three subfamilies, and four tribes, with a 97.09% sample coverage. We report four new records for the state of Veracruz. Models indicated that temperature and precipitation explain 45.58% and 49.97% of the variability in abundance and species richness, respectively. This work includes the first records of hawkmoths associated with agricultural ecosystems and low deciduous forest in Veracruz and their relationship with environmental variables.