Whereas the Deaths-head Hawkmoth (see this Collection’s website) was once feared and considered to be ‘the device of evil spirits’, the smaller Hummingbird Hawkmoth (Macroglossum stellaterum) was welcomed as being ‘a messenger of good will and happy tidings’. These fascinating moths visit the UK from Southern Europe and North Africa during the summer months: only recently has it been recorded as surviving overwinter (usually in buildings and holes in trees) in some areas of Southern England - a possible indicator of climate change?
Like its avian namesake, it flies rapidly from flower to flower (its favourites include jasmine and buddleia) and, instead of landing, will hover in front of a flower and sip the nectar using its long proboscis which, because of its length, is kept coiled when not being used. While hovering, the wings move in a shallow figure-of-eight shape to generate lift while reputedly beating at an amazing 85 beats per second.
The female lays her eggs singly among the flowers and buds of bedstraw and valerian, the larval food plants. The eggs hatch within a week – the emerging larvae passing through several moults before pupating; there are two distinct colour forms of larvae, one green and the other brown. The pupa is normally enclosed in a silk cocoon spun within the leaves of the food plant or among the dead leaves and general detritus on the ground. During the summer the adult moth emerges three weeks after pupation.
