A variety of hummingbird moths, also called sphinx moths and hawkmoths, have been spotted in the Conservancy gardens. The one shown on this page was sipping nectar through its extended proboscis from a firespike in Garden 1.

This large day-flying species belongs to the family of moths called Sphingidae. Members of the genus Aellopos live from Maine in the United States through Central America and down to Argentina and Uruguay in South America.

The larval stage of members of family Sphingidae is called a "hornworm" because the caterpillar's posterior end has a harmless hook or hornlike appendage protruding upward. Larvae feed day and night on woody and herbaceous plants.

Adult Sphingidae feed on flowers and resemble bumblebees and hummingbirds. The moth species pictured on this page has a distinctive wide stripe across its abdomen.

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Links:

Index to Butterfly and Moth Visitors to the Conservancy Ecotone Trail

Index To Photographs of Plants in the Gardens

Plant Lists by Garden

Conservancy of Southwest Florida Ecotone Home Page

Conservancy of Southwest Florida Home Page.

Please report errors to Susan Snyder at susanleachsnyder@gmail.com