Caterpillar resembling a snake I found a very interesting caterpillar. It's 5 cm long and looks like a snake. I discoved it in a greenhouse on a vine in the Czech Republic. ![enter image description here]( * * * I found two types: a green one and a brown one, both with same length. ## ![enter image description here]( What species is it?

Looks like the larvae of an **elephant hawk moth** ( ** _Deilephila elpenor_**).

![enter image description here](

Green Variant. ©2005 Henk Wallays (CC BY-NC 3.0)

* In the Sphingidae family (like the snake-mimic caterpillar in this post).



**Description** : typically brown-gray color with black dots along length of body. Young larvae are yellowish-white or green, but some mature larvae also can be green colored. Fully-grown caterpillars reach 7.62 cm in length.

* Have a backward curving spine or "horn" on the final abdominal segment.



![D. elpenor variation](

_D. elpenor_ color variation. Source: A.R. Pittaway & I.J. Kitching

**Range** : Most common in central Europe and is distributed throughout the palearctic region.

**Habitat** : variety: including rough grassland, heathland, sand dunes, hedgerows, woodland, open countryside, and even urban gardens.

Source: Wikipedia