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Revisiting my initial ID I realised what I thought was a Migrant Hawker was in fact a Southern Migrant Hawker (or blue-eyed hawker). A rare visitor to the UK - after a single confirmed record during the twentieth century, four individuals were observed in southern England during 2006. During 2010 there were further reports in south Essex and north Kent.
Distinguished from the Migrant Hawker by the triangle marking on abdominal segment 2 (see photo in link below for key ID vs Migrant Hawker).
This was taken in my garden.
I came upon this silver-striped hawk moth sunning on a sandstone rock and marveled at its unique beauty, the efficiency of its evolutionary design.
I read once that hawk moths were 'the underdog of the pollinator world' compared to the bees and butterflies.
Known for their ability to travel incredible distances and for the extremely long proboscis with which they dip in to the nectar at the same time picking up pollen. Research has shown that hawk moths can spread pollen from more than 29 km away as they travel along their feeding routes.
6cm wingspan
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Welcome to the planet
Welcome to existence
Everyone's here
Everyone's here
Everybody's watching you now
Everybody waits for you now
What happens next
What happens next
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor
I dare you to move
I dare you to move
Like today never happened
Today never happened before
~Lines from Switchfoot's song Dare you to move
The superb male Scarlet dragonfly (Crocothemis erythraea).
© 2024 Marc Haegeman. All Rights Reserved.
The green face is diagnostic.
The species is distinguished in that the female is bright green with a banded abdomen and the mature male has a blue abdomen with a green face and green and blue thorax.
The eastern pondhawk is native to parts of North America and Central America. The eastern pondhawk is an athletic, swift-flying predator, able to catch damselflies and other insect prey on the wing.
Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erythemis_simplicicollis
Central Florida, USA
The Cinnabar Moth is a striking day-flying moth with dark forewings marked by vivid red spots and a red stripe along the wing edge. Its warning colours help deter predators, as both the adult moth and its yellow-and-black caterpillars are associated with ragwort, from which the larvae take in bitter-tasting toxins. It is often seen in grassland, coastal areas, rough ground and other places where ragwort grows.