Kolibri in Sochi exists only as the name of a beauty salon, but nothing more. But hummingbird-like moth really lives in these parts. It really looks more like a bird than an insect - quite large, can reach 5 centimeters in wingspan, and with a long proboscis, similar to the beak of a hummingbird. This amazing moth is called common tongue, from the hawk moth family. It is often mistaken for a hummingbird because, unlike other insects that collect nectar with a proboscis, it does not sit on flowers, but rather hovers above them. The body of the common tongue is shaggy, and with its rapid movement it may seem that it is in plumage.
Moth similar to a hummingbird - common tongue
The common tongue is most easily distinguished from a hummingbird by the antennae located on its head, like all lepidopterans. Of course, with his sudden movements, they are sometimes not noticeable, but if this shaggy handsome guy is not frightened by camera flashes, he will allow himself to be seen at a closer distance.
This is a real hummingbird 
Hawkmoth is also good, but still not a bird
Typically, the common tongue tongue lives on well-warmed forest edges, but in the fall, when wild flowers become scarce, it is attracted to city flower beds. By local residents It has been noticed that this moth especially likes to feast on the nectar of the coleus flower. Most often, this flower is planted in the garden or on the balcony because of its beautiful decorative leaves, while trimming the inconspicuous inflorescences. But some housewives leave coleus flowers solely to admire every day how a hummingbird-like moth collects nectar on their balcony.
HUMMINGBIRD OF THE INSECT WORLD The proboscis hawk moth or common tongue hawk (Macroglossum stellatarum L.), like a hummingbird, hovers over a flower, lowering its long proboscis into it.
The common tongue hawk or proboscis hawk moth - Macroglossum stellatarum (Linnaeus, 1758) is a small hawk moth with a wingspan of 40 - 50 mm. The front wings are gray with a dark transverse pattern, the hind wings are bright orange with a narrow dark border. Active during the day. It feeds by hovering over flowers. The proboscis is well developed. In the pupa, the proboscis sheath is welded together, but protrudes keel-like. This species is common in Europe, North Africa, in the north and in middle lane Asia, South India. In the CIS - everywhere in the southern and central regions to the Far East. In Kuban mass appearance, found everywhere. Migrant, the first generation is replenished by vagrant individuals. In Kuban it gives at least three generations, partially coinciding in time: I - November - May, II - June - July, III - August - September. Both the butterfly and the pupa overwinter. During the thaw, a flying butterfly can be found in any winter month. The butterfly lays eggs on a food plant in flight, attaching them one at a time. The caterpillar feeds on bedstraw and madder. Pupates in the ground. Before pupation, the caterpillar turns red. The doll is light.
Hawkmoths are for the most part large butterflies with a thick, muscular body, tapering towards the rear end. The fore wings of hawk moths are narrow, long, and pectoral muscles very powerful, which is why hawk moths are the fastest butterflies. The record speed among butterflies: 54 km per hour was recorded for hawk moths. The flight of these butterflies is so fast that you don’t even have time to see them.
Sometimes in the summer on meadow paths, or even in the city, you can meet large caterpillars slowly crawling. Someone will say “ugh, what a disgusting thing!”, and someone, on the contrary, will pick it up with interest. The caterpillar, of course, doesn’t like this, it begins to wriggle and curl up into a ring, because it has eaten itself for several weeks and is now looking for a secluded place to pupate. The caterpillar shown in the photo wine hawkmoth(lat. Deilephila elpenor) light brown, with a greenish tint; on the sides of the front part of the body, near the head, it has dark spots with a white border on top and a small horn on the tail. If the caterpillar is frightened, it retracts its head, inflates the segments with eye patterns, making them look like the head of a snake with eyes, which should scare off unwanted predators. This caterpillar feeds on fireweed, better known among us as fireweed, bedstraw and grape leaves (for which it received its name). After pupation, the following year it will hatch into a wine hawk moth, a rather large twilight moth, which is very similar to a hummingbird in its flight and feeding habits. Even in English it is called elephant hawk moth, which can be roughly translated as “elephant moth.”
Wine Hawkmoth(lat. Deilephila elpenor) - a butterfly from the family hawk moths (Sphingidae). Wingspan 50-70 mm. The coloring of the forewings and body is olive-pink with transverse oblique pink bands on the forewings. The hind wings are black at their base. Widely distributed in the Palearctic. Flight time is from mid-May to mid-August, one, sometimes two generations. The caterpillar stage is from mid-June to August. The color of the caterpillar varies from light green to brown and almost black; on the 4th and 5th rings there are “eyes” with a dark core and a white border. The horn is short, black-brown. The caterpillars' food plants are fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium and E. hirsutum) and fireweed (Chamerion); less often bedstraw, impatiens, grapes. Pupation on the soil; the pupa overwinters.
Below is a photo (not mine) of what an imago (adult moth) looks like:
Photo by jean pierre Hamon, Wikipedia
Wine hawk moth belongs to the genus Deilephila. These are large and medium-sized butterflies with a wingspan of 40-80 mm. Wine Hawkmoth the middle one is an olive butterfly with a pink pattern. The base of the hind wings is black. Wingspan 50-70 mm. The head, chest and abdomen of the moth are olive green. The pinkish stripes on the back in the abdominal area merge into one longitudinal line. The antennae are thickened, grayish-pink. The eyes are large, complex, covered with scales. Insects have excellent vision, they see objects when low light. Insects are common in Europe, including the south of the Urals. Found in Turkey, Iran, Central Asia, India, Korea, Japan and China. It lives in gardens, at the edge of the forest, and on roadsides. Settles on honeysuckle bushes, petunias and iris flowers. Moths living in gardens and parks pollinate 5-10% of nearby trees and shrubs.
The wine hawk moth caterpillar can be green or dark brown, almost black in color. On the 4-5 body segment there are round black eyes with a white border. The tail horn is short, black at the base, and the tip is white. Due to their large size (70-80 mm), the caterpillars make a terrifying impression on people. They are actually not dangerous. The larvae do not even cause serious harm to plants.
In case of danger, the wine hawk moth caterpillar is capable of inflating a segment of the body that has eyes. She draws her head in and assumes a sphinx pose, lifting her front legs off the surface. At the same time, she becomes like a snake. Considering impressive size bodies such enemies as birds prefer not to engage in combat.
The summer time of butterflies is from May to August. They are active in the evening until midnight. Moths feed on flowers and mate. Depending on the region where they live, they give from one to five generations. For plants that open their buds at close intervals, they are excellent pollinators. IN mating season they often fly towards light sources.
Hawk Moths excellent flyers, during migration they cover thousands of kilometers. Butterflies are able to hover in one place, feeding on the nectar of flowers, and move vertically up and down.
The fertilized female lays individual or paired round eggs on the leaves and stems of food plants. Green masonry with a glossy surface. The embryo develops in 7-10 days. Young larvae are yellow or light green in color. As they mature, most become gray-brown with black streaks. This stage lasts about a month.
The wine hawk moth caterpillar can be both beneficial and harmful. It depends on her diet. The larva that settles on the weeds helps get rid of the grass without weeding. The insect does not harm agriculture. Hawkmoth food plants are fireweed flowers and ovary ( Ivan-tea), bedstraw, impatiens. IN in rare cases feeds on grape leaves.
Having reached the fifth instar, the larva descends to the ground and prepares for pupation. She chooses a place at the foot of the plant on which she fed and forms a cocoon. The pupa is brown, length 40-45 mm. They overwinter in the litter or upper layers of soil.
Hawkmoths fly at speeds of up to 50 km/h. The wind interferes with their flight and while feeding on flowers. When the wind force is 3 m/s, insects do not fly out to feed.
Medium wine hawk moth is listed in the Red Book of Karelia and Belgorod region like a rare species.
The wine hawk moth received the Latin name Deilephila elpenor in honor of the hero of mythology: Elpenor is a friend of Odysseus, returning with him from Troy; died after falling from the roof of the palace of the sorceress Circe.
There is an assumption that these spots on the caterpillars of wine hawk moths imitate the “glasses” of a cobra. However, it is unlikely that birds would confuse a small caterpillar with a snake, especially since wine hawk moths are widespread in areas where cobras are not found. And simple experience has shown that birds very willingly eat ocellated caterpillars. There is no clear answer to the question about the reason for this coloring. The horn of the caterpillar of the average wine hawk moth is weakly expressed.
The hawk moth family (Sphingidae) is one of the fastest flyers not only among butterflies, but also among insects in general. Some reach speeds of up to 60 km/h! Narrow and long front wings and a streamlined, aerodynamic body make their flight swift and maneuverable. It was they, like some birds, that became the prototype for the creation of jet aircraft, thanks to observant designers. Hawkmoths make from 37 to 85 wing beats per second, while the swallowtail, for example, makes only 5-6 beats.
You can hatch the wine hawk moth at home from the pupa yourself, but to do this, after pupation, it must be stored in the refrigerator for some time, otherwise the adult insect will hatch somewhere around the New Year, when it will have nothing to eat. detailed information about their breeding -
Like a hummingbird July 14th, 2014
A common tongue hawk or proboscis hawk moth (Macroglossum stellatarum) hovered over a flower - large hawk moth, really looking like a hummingbird. This species is most often mistaken for a small bird because it flies during the daytime.
Let's find out more about it...
Photo 2. 
Hawk moths are mostly nocturnal moths, but some species fly during the day. It's pretty large insects with a large, streamlined body and narrow, elongated, like jet plane wings. The fastest of the butterflies, they can reach speeds of up to 50 km/h. Hawkmoth caterpillars are quite large and almost all have a characteristic outgrowth at the rear end of the body - a “horn”. Many species of these butterflies are protected and listed in the regional Red Books. IN Lipetsk region You can find several species of hawk moths.
Photo 3. 
It is found in well-warmed biotopes, along the edges of forests. The species is capable of long-distance migrations. Two generations develop per year. The first generation of butterflies (flying from early May to mid-July) consists mainly of individuals arriving from the south, and some of the second generation butterflies (flying from late August to late October) migrate south in the fall.
Caterpillars develop on bedstraws and chickweeds: the first generation - from September to October (the pupa or adult overwinter), the second generation - from June to August.
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This butterfly is widespread in Europe, the North Caucasus, North Africa, central Asia, South India and Far East. It is found everywhere in Crimea.
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Along with having a trunk like a hummingbird, its wings can move just as quickly while making a low humming noise. The common tongue has good memory, constantly returning to the same 50 flowers.
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If you look closely butterfly Hawkmoth, you can see in it a lot in common with the hummingbird bird. A large-sized butterfly with a long, thick and fluffy body really very much resembles a tiny bird.
Not all flowers are able to withstand its considerable weight. Therefore, hawk moths do not sit on flowers, but suck nectar from them using their proboscis spout directly in flight. From the outside it is interesting to observe how a large butterfly hovers over a bud and, with the rapid action of its wings, extracts the flower’s valuable nectar.
And this continues until it gets heavier. People have noticed that after almost complete saturation, the butterfly flies from flower to flower, swaying smoothly, as if under the influence of alcohol.
People who lead a not entirely sober lifestyle are sometimes called hawk moths. So this name stuck to the butterfly because of its seemingly reckless behavior and smooth swaying movements during flight.
There is also an opinion why people called them that way. The fact is that the butterfly drinks nectar with such pleasure as a person who likes to drink beer. The name is ancient, so the real reason Why the butterfly was called Hawkmoth is probably simply impossible to find out. Most people are still inclined to the first version, which is indeed more like the truth.
Features and habitat
In nature there is simply an incredible amount of the most diverse, beautiful and ugly, ordinary and supernatural. But, perhaps, the most popular of all this variety is the Hawk Moth butterfly.
Brazhnik wine medium
There are many legends about her. There is simply an incredible number of signs and superstitions associated with it. The butterfly Hawkmoth was given a not entirely minor role in the popular film "The Silence of the Lambs", in which main character, suffering from manic tendencies, grew these moths and placed their pupae in the mouth of each of his victims.
In general, everything connected with the Hawk Moth butterfly has long been dark, mystical and frightening. For some reason, since ancient times, people have considered this moth a harbinger of disasters and always tried to destroy it when they met it.
Why did people dislike this beauty so much? There are several answers to this question. One of the very first and most compelling reasons for human hatred of the Hawkmoth butterfly is its appearance.
Euphorbia Hawkmoth
The fact is that on her back it’s as if someone specially drew a human skull with crossbones. Looking at such a picture, it’s unlikely that positive thoughts will come to anyone’s mind.
The second reason for people’s dislike of this insect was its unpleasant squeak. It is so loud and unpleasant, like screaming, that it makes people shudder.
A picture on the back is added to this cry and the harbinger of trouble is ready. Such external data prompted many people to creative works, in which basically this sweet and wonderful creature acted as a monster.
At its core, this butterfly is considered one of the largest. The span of her beautiful wings sometimes reaches up to 14 cm. This beauty belongs to the order Lepidoptera. The body of the butterfly has the shape of a cone, its wings are narrow and elongated.
Hawkmoth cingulata
The butterfly has long antennae, round eyes and a long proboscis, which is its main assistant in obtaining food. Short and strong spines are observed on the insect's legs. Scales are visible on the abdomen. The front wings are wide and somewhat pointed towards the apex.
The rear ones are slightly smaller, sloping towards the rear. Butterfly caterpillars are large in size and have five pairs of legs. Their color is difficult to confuse with anyone else. It is bright, with diagonal stripes and spots reminiscent of eyes.
At the end of the body of the Hawkmoth butterfly caterpillar, an outgrowth of a dense structure in the form of a horn is clearly visible. In many places, these caterpillars cause harm to forestry, gardening and agriculture, damaging crops.
Death's Head Hawkmoth (Acherontia atropos)
All species of this family are comfortable in a warm environment. But among them there are also those who, for some reason, can migrate much further north from their usual habitats.
They can easily fly across seas and mountain ranges. If we consider some Hawkmoth species, you can discern significant differences between them. Oleander hawk moth, for example, deep green, like grass.
Its front wings have a distinctive pattern with varying shades of white, brown, green and purple. The hind wings are predominantly gray and purple tones, bordered by a green rim.
In color ocellated hawkmoth The predominant color is brown and a pattern reminiscent of marble. A longitudinal brown stripe is clearly visible along the front back of the insect. The base of the hind wings is soft pink with red tones. They stand out well in the middle large spots black with blue colors, resembling eyes.
Tobacco Hawkmoth slightly gray yellow. On the back of his body there are beautiful yellow rectangles separated by black stripes. This moth is very beautiful in real life. U linden hawkmoth Olive-green tones predominate in color. Irregular dark spots are visible on its wings.
Character and lifestyle
Hawkmoth butterflies, despite popular rumor, are actually very gentle and harmless creatures. Their appearance on summer cottage not an omen of trouble, but a great chance to observe this beautiful creature, many of whose species are listed in the Red Book.
poplar hawkmoth
It looks much better in real life than Hawkmoth in the photo. Although the photo conveys its incredible beauty. These insects are considered the fastest pollinators of flowers. In flight, they develop incredible speed - up to 50 km/h.
Butterflies fly at a certain period. They can be seen in late summer and early autumn. Almost all species of these insects prefer to live in crepuscular and night image life. But among them there are also those that can be seen during the day.
Every year they cover a huge distance, getting from Africa to Europe. Before turning into a doll, the Hawkmoth butterfly is completely immersed in the ground. And after 5-6 hours it can only stick out its head in order to feed on the leaves that it reaches.
Far Eastern hawk moth
Most often it can be found in potato fields. Many observant workers Agriculture seen more than once Hawkmoth pupa when harvesting potatoes.
These insects can get into the hive to get honey for themselves. When touched, they emit a heart-rending and disgusting squeak. They are not afraid of bee stings due to the thick hairs all over their body.
Nutrition
This moth's favorite treat is flower nectar. How he gets it was mentioned a little higher. It is worth adding that this is not at all easy to do. Such tricks are considered aerobatics.
Hawkmoth collecting nectar from a flower
In order to get the honey that butterflies love, they have to fly over the hive and pretend that they are bees. A funny and interesting show. It is not difficult for a hawk moth to use its proboscis to pierce a honeycomb and feast on honey from it.
Reproduction and lifespan
Basically, a butterfly manages to produce offspring twice. If there is prolonged Warm autumn, this could happen a third time. True, when it gets cold, the offspring from the third brood in most cases die from a sharp change in temperature.
Hawkmoth caterpillar
IN life cycle Brazhnikov butterflies have 4 phases. Initially, a sexually mature female lays an egg. From which the larva emerges over time ( Hawkmoth caterpillar). The larva eventually turns into a pupa, which becomes an adult butterfly.
In order for a male to mate with a female, she secretes a special pheromone that attracts a gentleman. Mating takes several hours. After which the female lays her eggs on the plants. There may be about a thousand of them. Most often, Hawkmoth eggs can be seen on nightshade plants, potatoes, and tobacco.
The appearance of larvae is noticed on days 2-4. Larvae need a lot of food to survive normally. Therefore, they actively absorb it in the evening and at night. The larva grows to large sizes, its length can reach 15 cm.
Hawkmoth oleander
Her whole appearance may be threatening, but in fact she is a painfully harmless creature who spends most of her time underground and appears on the surface of the earth only if she needs to refresh herself. The pupa has to survive the winter in the ground. At the same time, she does not wrap herself in a cocoon. With the arrival of spring, a real Hawk Moth butterfly emerges from such a pupa.
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