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Project Noah Nature School
Hemaris diffinis
Hummingbird moth. Flies like a hummingbird.
Was in my flower garden. I have butterfly bush and other flowering bushes that attract them. Habitat is in the outskirts of the city but is surrounded by woods and a nearby creek and river. Very hot summers, very cold winters.
I have never seen one stay still like this. He let me take at least a dozen photos without moving. Not sure if he was resting or injured. I get dozens of them surrounding my purple butterfly bush in my front yard garden. Although, I did not see one in the summer of 2011 for some reason. The last photo is another spotting but still the same species in the same year. It was feeding on my butterfly bush.
Spotted on Jul 13, 2007
Submitted on Dec 22, 2011
6 Comments
Thanks Melissa...I appreciate the information about their wings as well, I didn't know that.
The hummingbird moths are fascinating....it is my understanding that they become a "clear wing" moth when they have shed the scales on their wings! Your photo's are terrific!
They really love purple butterfly bush as well. This one happened to be resting on Hollyhock. I love butterfly bush because not only does it attract these and some great butterflies but it smells fabulous, like honey.
These guys are lovely! I see them sometimes in our yard too - they seen to really like marigolds!
It's one of the neatest things to see a few of these on a butterfly bush. It seems unreal because when they are hovering on the plant to feed they really do look like miniature hummingbirds.
I would love to see one of these