Hummingbird Hawkmoth

Macroglossum stellatarum is one of the few day-flying hawkmoths in temperate latitudes, and her resemblance to a hummingbird is so accurate that European wildlife agencies receive thousands of misidentification reports each year — despite there being no native hummingbirds in Europe. The moth hovers in front of tubular flowers, beats her wings 70-80 times per second, and extends a long proboscis to drink nectar mid-air. She also migrates: northern populations cross the Mediterranean to southern Europe each fall and return in spring, with some individuals documented crossing the Sahara. Her hearing range overlaps with bat echolocation, allowing her to detect and evade nocturnal predators on her continent-spanning journeys. Caterpillars feed on bedstraw (Galium spp.) plants.