Hawk moths

UPDATE: 26 Aug 2022 – Convolvulus arrived to the tobacco plants in the garden after dusk. A rare sight in Cambridgeshire.

There are about 20 hawk-moths that you might come across in The British Isles, some far more often than others. Some are day-flying (diurnal), some night-flying (nocturnal), some drawn to light others preferring sweet nectar. These moths sit in the Sphingidae grouping, and are more generally known as Sphinx moths elsewhere.

Pine Hawk-moth
Eyed Hawk-moth

 

Privet Hawk-moth
Hummingbird Hawk-moth

 

Elephant Hawk-moth
Lime Hawk-moth
Small Elephant Hawk-moth
Poplar Hawk-moth

The photos above are the nine hawk-moths we have seen in our garden over the last four years of mothing here. So, still plenty to “tick”, as it were.