Protaleuron herbini is a moth

Moth

A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...

 of the Sphingidae

Sphingidae

Sphingidae is a family of moths , commonly known as hawk moths, sphinx moths and hornworms, that includes about 1,200 species . It is best represented in the tropics but there are species in every region . They are moderate to large in size and are distinguished among moths for their rapid,...

 family. It is known from Ecuador

Ecuador

Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...

.

The length of the forewings is 37 mm for males and 41 mm for females. It is similar to Protaleuron rhodogaster

Protaleuron rhodogaster

Protaleuron rhodogaster is a moth of the Sphingidae family. It is found from Ecuador to Bolivia.The length of the forewings is 34 mm for males. The upperside of the body is greenish olive, the scaling of the antennae is pinkish buff and the uppersides of the legs are buff. The forewing upperside...

, but distinguishable by the even forewing outer margin. Furthermore, the discal spot on the forewing upperside is larger and the scattered white scaling is much reduced.