Windwolf
Crex Meadows Moths... Hummingbird Clearwing
Hummingbird Clearwing
Hemaris thysbe
This Hummingbird Clearwing was feasting on flowers at the Crex Meadows Visitor Center late in the day.
These moths will often be seen in the day, most common in the later parts of the day.
Common names include Hummingbird moth and Common Clearwing.
One of the ID features between the Clearwings found in Wisconsin is leg color. For the Hummingbird Clearwing, the legs tend to be white or very light colored.
Another ID feature for the Hummingbird Clearwing is the eye line. On the Hummingbird Clearwing, any dark eye line tends to stop very close to the end of the eye and does not run downward into the white area below.
| Kingdom | Animalia | (Animals) |
| Phylum | Arthropoda | (Arthropods) |
| Superclass | Hexapoda | (Hexapods) |
| Class | Insecta | (Insects) |
| Subclass | Pterygota | (Winged Insects) |
| Order | Lepidoptera | (Butterflies and Moths) |
| Superfamily | Bombycoidea | |
| Family | Sphingidae | (Sphinx Moths) |
| Subfamily | Macroglossinae | |
| Tribe | Dilophonotini | |
| Genus | Hemaris | |
| Species | thysbe | (Hummingbird Clearwing) |
Wing span: 1 1/2 - 2 inches (3.8 - 5 cm).
Caterpillar hosts: Hawthorn, Honeysuckle, Snowberry, Viburnum. Some sites list fruit trees as another caterpillar host.
Habitat: Open areas with shrubs, young trees, gardens.
All pictures taken August 2, 2008 and are of the same Hummingbird Moth.
