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The Cahuilla Use of Piyatem, Larvae of the White-Lined Sphinx Moth (Hyles lineata) as Food

Abstract

In September, 1884, William Greenwood Wright published an article entitled "A Naturalist in the Desert" in the popular serial Overland Monthly (Wright 1884:279-284). This short paper contains a number of observations which substantiate existing ethnographic data regarding Cahuilla Indian village locations, agricultural methods, ethnobotanical practices, and social customs. Specifically, however, it contains a detailed graphic description of Cahuilla caterpillar exploitation. This particular paragraph of Wright's article is worth reprinting here for several reasons: (1) identification of the insect and its host plant are included; (2) the use of this insect, the White-lined Sphinx Moth, Hyles lineata (Fabricius), has seldom been recorded previously in an ethnographic context in California or elsewhere; and (3) Wright's description has not received attention and might be of interest to Cahuilla scholars.

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