Broad-bordered Bee Hawk-moth - Hemaris fuciformis

Phylum: Arthropoda - Class: Insecta - Order: Lepidoptera - Family: Sphingidae

The Broad-bordered Bee Hawk-moth is a day-flying moth species which, like the Hummingbird Hawk-moth, hovers in front of tubular flowers as it uses it proboscis to feed on nectar.

Description

Male and female Broad-bordered Bee Hawk-moths look almost identical. If you see both sexes close up you may notice that the female usually has a somewhat stouter body and slightly shorter and slimmer antennae than the male.

The wingspan ranges between 4.0 and 5.2cm. The wings are transparent and have reddish-brown borders. Both males and females have fuzzy bee-like bodies.

Distribution

In Britain the distribution of the Hummingbird Hawk-moth is mainly restricted to Central and Southern England and some parts of Wales. There are strongholds in East Anglia and Lincolnshire with localised populations along parts of the South Coast of England and notably the New Forest in Hampshire.

This Eurasian moth species is also recorded in temperate parts of Central and Southern mainland Europe, parts of Asia, and Mediterranean-coastal North Africa.

Habitat

These moths favour open sunny places with plenty of nectar-producing flowers. They can be seen feeding on Buddleias in parks and gardens. In the UK and Ireland they are most often seen on deciduous woodland edges, in open woodland rides and on herb-rich scrubland bordering woods. Their main larval foodplants are Honeysuckle, but they sometimes use bedstraws such as Lady's Bedstraw and Heath Bedstraw.

Lifecycle

In the UK, the Broad-bordered Bee Hawk-moth usually produces one brood per year. Females lay their green eggs singly on the undersides of leaves of their larval hostplants, mainly Honeysuckle (Lonicera species) but also bedstraws (Galium species). In typically one to two weeks the eggs hatch and tiny green caterpillars emerge. These larvae feed on the leaves of their hostplant for two to three weeks. Fully grown caterpillars are up to 53mm long, bright green with purplish blotches underneath, and they have a distinctive rear horn. They turn dark purplish-brown before climbing down and spinning cocoons just below the ground or concealed under leaf litter. They overwinter in the pupal form.

Adults emerge from May to July. They fly rapidly on bright sunny days, hovering in front of nectar-rich funnel-shaped flowers such as Honeysuckle, Rhododendron, and Bugle.

Acknowledgements

This page includes pictures kindly contributed by Betty and Tony Rackham.

Studying butterflies and moths...

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