I looked closer... and closer.... I have opened window and looked even closer...
YES! this is it! Humming-bird Hawk-moth! (Macroglossum stellatarum) - it visited my garden!
This is the biggest event of this year. And weirdest moth I have seen with my own eyes. Have you seen it before? I grew up in the nature, North of Poland and I have never seen it. I even heard of it for the first time 2 years ago.
This moth can fly with the speed of 50 km/h and can fly really long distances.
It is flying very fast - this is why is difficult to photograph.
While hanging over the flowers for just a second - it drinks nectar and immediately move over to next flower...
This extraordinary meeting was short, but afterwards the moth was hanging on the wall in the ivy... so I could examine it little longer...
Finally it visited also my garden! Similar to hummingbirds, moth in reality. They are tropical and subtropical moths, not popular in Poland - they come as immigrants from South of Europe, but are unable to overwinter. Why do they come then? Are they going back?
I have red somewhere, that they have unique habit of visiting the same flowers at the same time in a sequence... hmm... will see tomorrow.
So unusual view... It made me so happy - I just red that in Italy and Malta it is a good omen to see it... right... that was a very good day...
I can not have hummingbirds in the garden, because they don't like this continent.
At least a moth, that fakes hummingbird...
Below you can see map, showing the places of appearence. I found special website dedicated to Sphingid Moths of Poland. It is also available in English, if you would like to check - click here.
I am going to add my observation as well - it will be located more or less centrally.
14 comments:
You are lucky to see the beautiful Hummingbird Moth. We have a very similar moth here. It is in our garden every summer. Hopefully since this moth has found your garden it, or its offspring will visit every summer.
Indeed it was a good omen, Ewa ...look how happy the visit made you :)
It's a pretty special moth! Don'y you love how it darts about like a hummingbird...we have the same kind that Lisa has in her garden.
Gail
They are very fun to watch, but the variety here in Texas are 1) primarily nocturnal, and 2) the caterpillars are tomato hornworms, and can defoliate a tomato plant very, very quickly...
We have a lot of those here in Austin, Texas, and not all of them are nocturnal. They visit most often at dusk. How wonderful that you had this visitor, and I'm impressed that caught pics of it the very first time you saw it.
What a lovely picture. Thank you. We have these moths in our garden too, but I didn't know what they were called until I read your post. I didn't know they visited the flowers in the same sequence - I'll watch them more carefully now! I hope your hummingbird moth manages to travel back to the south in time for the winter - and then comes back to you in Poland next summer!
Hi Ewa, I am so glad you got to enjoy this little visitor, and so close to your window too. That is a good shot of him and the flower. We have the one that the other North American gardeners have I think. It is a good omen, and you know how we welcome those! Thanks for letting me know about your post.
Frances
I have been visited by one also this summer! Aren't they amazing?
What a good omen! I've never seen it - don't know whether they fly as far as Sweden... You did a great job capturing it with your camera!
/Katarina
We apparently had some nocturnal Hawk Moths-as my desert rose flowers were fertilised and I got seeds!
Well done for managing to photograph it! I hope he brings you luck.
Perhaps it is part of this global warming that you are getting such exotic visitors? England is now getting a lot of European birds coming over during the Summer which didn't bother before.
There was some research recently which indicated that bees told other bees where flowers were, with a peculiar direction giving dance. I wonder if your moth could pass on his information?
Ewa, what a lovely encounter and you did well with your camera. How interesting little moth can me. I love them and I am always so happy when I see one so it must be a good omen.
Ewa, what a wonderful thing for you to see in your garden ! I agree that it is something very special & I'm sure you were happy to be up early enough & in the right place to see it. Have a wonderful weekend !
Lynda
They are beautiful creatures, we can find them here in Portugal, but they are not the most commun butterflies/moths around. Its always a great experience when I see one in my garden.
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