Hummingbird clearwing moth

Hemaris thysbe

Description:

Large diurnal moth. Commonly, clearwing moths, as it has clear patches in its wings. Had a long greenish proboscis, not visible in the pics. Seen in early evening ~6pm on petunias.

Habitat:

Maryland, US.

1 Species ID Suggestions

Jacob Gorneau 11 years ago

Hummingbird Clearwing Moth

Hemaris thysbe Hemaris thysbe, the Hummingbird Clearwing Moth

9 Comments

MayraSpringmann 11 years ago

Fantasticcapture!!

KeithRoragen 11 years ago

Lucky you got one to stop for a picture. Typically, when I see them, they never stop flying.

Gerardo Aizpuru 11 years ago

Wonderful spotting :)

mylyoung 11 years ago

Thanks Alice! I've never seen one before, but my guy called me over knowing I'd like to see it. It hung around the petunias long enough for me to go in, grab the camera, come back, and snap some pics. From what I've read, they're more attracted to the hummingbird/butterfly-attracting flowers, but it seemed happy with these. It was really cool!

alicelongmartin 11 years ago

I have not seen a clear more beautiful picture of them! Lucky you! I didn't even know they favored Petunias. Here in FL you find them around the night-blooming Jasmine.

mylyoung 11 years ago

I actually tried IE before rebooting and, amazingly, it worked! Cheers!

Jacob Gorneau 11 years ago

I am glad I could help! Did rebooting the computer fix the problem?

mylyoung 11 years ago

Thanks jgorneau. I was undecided between H. thysbe and H. diffinis. I leaned more towards thysbe, too. :)

Jacob Gorneau 11 years ago

I think you are on the right track with Hemaris sp. Bugguide.net may be able to help you get a specific ID. Another good website is http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org. I hope this helps!