Interesting Insect!

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BluJay

It has been a while since I have been here, and although I have thought of you all often! Birds are doing well, as far as I know, hubby sends me video clips of them all the time. I do miss them.
I was at my best friend’s country home - who is an assistant professor of anthropology, namely, music and culture. We were sitting out back in her flower garden, having fresh salad, we picked from her garden, just enjoying the warm of the sun and watching the sunset, it was so beautiful, the sky was pink and blue gray, with white clouds, talking about the past four years of our lives.
Suddenly, this little flying critter, hovering about, at first we thought bumble bee, then baby humming bird. I stated I will grab my camera, get photographs, so we can learn what it is. It turned out to be an insect, which later we learn is hummingbird moth. My friend and I have never seen them before, and I am not sure if they are in Australia, so I thought I would stop in and share this most interesting insect with you and say Hello.
Kind Regards


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GregH
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Posts: 1671
Joined: 17 Feb 2009, 08:20
Location: Brisbane
Location: Chapel Hill, Brisbane Qld

Hi Blujay. The insect you photographed is al little hard to see all the details but it's likely to be a spinx moth. They are commonly mistaken for hummers. What sets it apart from my next guess is the long feeding tube (haustellum) that hover or syrphid fly just don't have. Syrphids too are found all over the world so the family (Syrphidae) is well known to Australians and many have this yellow and black colouration that makes them look like wasps or bees. I know hummers are small but a hoverfly this big is unlikely.
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BluJay

Greetings GregH, thanks for the information. Watching this insect hover about, was nearly
as much fun, as watching, photographing birds! Sorry, the photo is shotty
guess that happens taking out of raw, when resizing in photo bucket. Nonetheless, it made for good day.
Thought I would share with you the link, my friend and I used - http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemaris, to attempt
To identify the critter. Again thanks, hope all is well.
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GregH
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Posts: 1671
Joined: 17 Feb 2009, 08:20
Location: Brisbane
Location: Chapel Hill, Brisbane Qld

Well I got the order and family right but I'm unfamiliar with the genus Hemaris - in fact I've never seen a clear-wing sphinx moth. Finches2011 is a professional lepedoptra expert - he might know if Hemaris species are in Australia. A long time ago I worked on Crinum flaccidum lilies near Kootingal, just north of Tamworth in NSW and they too proved to be favoured by a couple of sphinx moth species. Watching the precise flight control of hummers, syrphids or sphinx moths is mesmerising.
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BluJay

So true, GregH, they are mesmerizing! Thanks for the info, would like to know more. Have a wonderful day.
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