Another Moth Moment, brought to you by a local sponsor

I was so happy to have my caterpillar identification book on hand when I found this creature struggling along in the mud down by the new house the other day:

I was able to identify it as this moth that we found several weeks ago:

It is a Pandorus Sphinx moth (Eumorpha pandorus). My book says that the caterpillar (about 3.5 inches long!) is "frequently encountered while it is wandering in search of a pupaton site." It also says that grape is a common host plant for it, so I left it by the grapevine in front of the cabin in the hopes that it would find that a suitable site for its metamorphosis.

Pretty cool, huh?