Hummingbird Clearwing Moth on Wild Bergamot

Here's a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth drinking from a Wild Bergamot (just in case you didn't believe the Silver-spotted Skipper or the Spicebush Swallowtail when they showed how delicious the flower's nectar is).

While it's hard to get familiar with a lot of moths because many are noctural, or very small, or gray/brown without obvious patterns. These moths offer none of those obstacles, flying around in broad daylight, being larger than many insects, and having a fairly distinctive appearance.

I've talked about these moths before, though I like the way you can see the proboscis in this picture. That's the appendage going from the front of the head down into the flower, and it's the means by which moths, butterflies, and some other insects can drink nectar from flowers. Note this allows them to drink from some narrow tubular flowers that might be inaccessible to them otherwise.

July 18, 2021 at Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary


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