Hummingbird Hawk-moth - the hum of summer

Kerry Williams
, 19 June 2026
Hummingbird Hawk-moth - the hum of summer
Hummingbird Hawkmoth on Lavender © John Lauper

By Kerry Williams

Communications Officer - Conservation

Nature is full of confusing naming conventions, throwing many of us into temple-rubbing identification exasperation. Dark Green Fritillary butterflies are mostly orange. Bearded Tits are actually moustachioed Reedlings. And don’t get me started on Slow Worms.

The Hummingbird Hawk-moth, however, satisfyingly does what it says on the tin. The species has developed similar abilities as its avian namesakes, especially the hummingbird. It's an example of convergent evolution, where different species evolve to have the same techniques despite not being related; think the ability to fly in both bats and birds.

Hummingbird Hawk-moth resting © Simon Linington

Whilst resting, the Hummingbird Hawk-moth looks quite unassuming; mostly grey in colour and blending in with muted surroundings. But in flight is where the glorious hummingbird transformation happens.

The moth’s wings beat at an astonishing 80 times per second, so fast that their orange underwing colouration appears to merge with their overall form and they look brighter. Their long, curled proboscis, a straw-like mouthpart resembling a swirl of black liquorice, is unfurled and prepped for nectar-slurping, à la hummingbird beak. Large eyes help perfect their proboscis precision. The moth flits between flowers, zipping about in expert hover so quick that its wings emit an audible hum.

Lady's Bedstraw & Marjoram at Southerham Farm © Nigel Symington

They can be found in a variety of habitats, including our gardens and urban green spaces; anywhere they can get that proboscis stuck into nectar-rich plants like Honeysuckle and Buddleia. The caterpillars feed on plants from the bedstraw family, so females will lay their eggs on the flowers of these plants.

Hummingbird Hawk-moths are a summer visitor to the UK, migrating from southern Europe and north Africa in variable numbers each year. They can be found any time between May and September and are most commonly spotted around the south of the UK and its coastlines – lucky Sussex.

Hummingbird Hawk-moth © Andrew Holloway

As a day-flying moth, Hummingbird Hawk-moths give us the opportunity to see them up close in all their glory, and as hummingbirds are restricted to North and South America, for many of us this is the closest we may get to the real deal.

But with these eye-catching insects offering us our own buzzing burst of summer’s hum, that gasp-inducing tangerine flash spied on walks or through windows, those mindful minutes gifted by following their floral fastidiousness - honestly, who needs a hummingbird?

Leave a comment

Comments

  • Alison Skinner:

    My friend saw one of these beautiful insects in her garden in Sutton Surrey. It was delightful to read more about them.

    19 Jun 2026 16:44:00

  • Alison Skinner:

    My friend saw one of these beautiful insects in her garden in Sutton Surrey. It was delightful to read more about them.

    19 Jun 2026 19:13:00

  • Alison Skinner:

    My friend saw one of these beautiful insects in her garden in Sutton Surrey. It was delightful to read more about them.

    20 Jun 2026 09:11:00

  • Alison Skinner:

    My friend saw one of these beautiful insects in her garden in Sutton Surrey. It was delightful to read more about them.

    20 Jun 2026 19:22:00

  • Richard Gabriel:

    I have these around my home on N.E. Tennessee every year. They look just like little hummingbirds.

    21 Jun 2026 20:33:00

  • Grace Gosnell:

    I have seen them here in my backyard in San Antonio tx. Nice to hear more about these lovely little ones.

    22 Jun 2026 10:34:00

  • Alicja:

    Spotted one in Bognor Regis, Sussex. For whole 20 min I was gaping believing I was seeing a God honest hummingbird in my garden. UntiI I googled it :D

    22 Jun 2026 19:31:00

  • Edina M Hess:

    I had one on my flowers several years ago in Western PA.

    22 Jun 2026 23:48:00

  • Linda Reed:

    Are these seen in the northeast United States, NYS?

    23 Jun 2026 02:14:00

  • Gail Montgomery:

    We see them here in Northville, Michigan. They are half the size of a hummingbird and have more of a rounded rectangle form, but those flapping wings are the same as a hummingbird and their choice of flowers for nectar as well. Absolute favorite… Black and Blue Salvia, an annual. if you’ve never had this plant, it’s a must have. It’s always the first thing they go to.

    23 Jun 2026 12:09:00

  • Connie:

    These pretty moths are the tomato hornworms. Don’t hurt them.

    23 Jun 2026 12:40:00

  • Mary Heath:

    I live in New Hampshire,,, still a little to cool out,, but I see these moths in the summer on my butterfly bush. they seem to always come back,, like the hummingbirds do……🪻🪻🪻

    23 Jun 2026 15:09:00

  • Janice Marie Blevins:

    “a beautiful example of convergent evolution” so cleverly dismisses the creator out of hand.

    23 Jun 2026 21:14:00

  • Celeste Biddle:

    My husband, Jim, has seen several this year and in the recent past, just an hour west of bloomington in

    23 Jun 2026 23:40:00

  • Kat Renaud:

    Seen one in Cheboygan, Michigan, first time,Another example of the creative powers of our God,so beautiful!

    24 Jun 2026 12:38:00

  • Peggy Pavek:

    Interesting!

    24 Jun 2026 13:43:00

  • Diane:

    I live in Ontario Canada and have had 2 of these come to my gardens last summer!! One was a baby. I made videos and took a ton of pictures. Truly Amazing and Beautiful 😍

    24 Jun 2026 20:33:00

  • Connie Kosloske:

    I have pictures of a hummingbird moth in Tampa FL USA

    24 Jun 2026 20:46:00

Time Δ Debug Message - Perch Runway 3.2
1782401521.99710 [906] SELECT p.pagePath, pr.routePattern, pr.routeRegExp, p.pageTemplate, pr.routeOrder, s.settingValue AS siteOffline FROM swt_pages_staging p LEFT JOIN swt_page_routes pr ON p.pageID=pr.pageID LEFT JOIN swt_settings s ON s.settingID='siteOffline' UNION SELECT NULL AS pagePath, pr2.routePattern, pr2.routeRegExp, pr2.templatePath AS pageTemplate, pr2.routeOrder, NULL AS siteOffline FROM swt_page_routes pr2 WHERE templateID!=0 ORDER BY routeOrder ASC, pagePath ASC
1782401522.03190.0347Matched route: news/[slug:s]
1782401522.0320.0002Server address: 216.73.217.95
1782401522.03210Using master page: /templates/pages/blog/post.php
1782401522.03210Page arguments: 
Array
(
    [0] => /news/hummingbird-hawk-moth-the-hum-of-summer
    [s] => hummingbird-hawk-moth-the-hum-of-summer
    [1] => hummingbird-hawk-moth-the-hum-of-summer
)
1782401522.03240.0003 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1782401522.03350.0011 [86] SELECT DISTINCT settingID, settingValue FROM swt_settings WHERE userID=0
1782401522.03580.0023 [1] SELECT locationID FROM swt_shop_tax_locations WHERE locationIsHome=1 LIMIT 1
1782401522.03650.0007INSERT INTO swt_shop_cart(memberID,locationID,currencyID,cartPricing,cartProperties) VALUES(NULL,'1',47,'standard','[]')
1782401522.03880.0023 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_shop_cart WHERE cartID=22274247
1782401522.03960.0008 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_shop_cart WHERE cartID=22274247
1782401522.04030.0008 [nil] SELECT * FROM swt_shop_sales WHERE saleFrom<='2026-06-25 15:32:00' AND saleTo>'2026-06-25 15:32:00' AND saleActive=1 AND saleDeleted IS NULL ORDER BY saleOrder ASC
1782401522.04170.0013 [1] SELECT SQL_CALC_FOUND_ROWS DISTINCT tbl.* FROM ( SELECT idx.itemID, main.*, idx2.indexValue as sortval FROM swt_blog_index idx JOIN swt_blog_posts main ON idx.itemID=main.postID AND idx.itemKey='postID' JOIN swt_blog_index idx2 ON idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey='postID' AND idx2.indexKey='_id' WHERE 1=1 AND ((idx.indexKey='postSlug' AND idx.indexValue='hummingbird-hawk-moth-the-hum-of-summer')) AND idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey=idx2.itemKey GROUP BY idx.itemID, idx2.indexValue, postID ) as tbl WHERE (postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-06-25 15:32:00' ) GROUP BY itemID, sortval ORDER BY sortval ASC LIMIT 0, 10
1782401522.04420.0025 [1] SELECT FOUND_ROWS() AS `count`
1782401522.04490.0007 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_posts WHERE postID=3955 AND postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-06-25 15:32:00'
1782401522.0460.0011 [13] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_sections ORDER BY sectionTitle ASC
1782401522.04680.0008 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blogs ORDER BY blogTitle ASC
1782401522.04750.0007 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_categories WHERE catID=267 LIMIT 1
1782401522.04840.0009 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_categories WHERE catID=49 LIMIT 1
1782401522.04920.0008Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1782401522.04940.0002 [162] SELECT catID, catPath FROM swt_categories
1782401522.05060.0012 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_posts WHERE postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-06-25 15:32:00' AND postSlug='hummingbird-hawk-moth-the-hum-of-summer'
1782401522.07810.0274Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1782401522.07870.0006 [250] SELECT country, countryID FROM swt_shop_countries WHERE countryActive=1 ORDER BY country ASC
1782401522.08060.002Using template: /templates/pages/attributes/seo.html
1782401522.08080.0002 [1] SELECT regionID, regionTemplate, regionPage, regionRev AS rev FROM swt_content_regions WHERE regionKey='Banner image' AND (regionPage='/news/post' OR regionPage='*')
1782401522.0820.0011 [nil] SELECT * FROM ( SELECT idx.itemID, c.regionID, idx.pageID, c.itemJSON, idx2.indexValue as sortval FROM swt_content_index idx JOIN swt_content_items c ON idx.itemID=c.itemID AND idx.itemRev=c.itemRev AND idx.regionID=c.regionID JOIN swt_content_index idx2 ON idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemRev=idx2.itemRev AND idx2.indexKey='_order' WHERE ((idx.regionID=104 AND idx.itemRev=0)) AND idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemRev=idx2.itemRev ) as tbl GROUP BY itemID, pageID, itemJSON, sortval, regionID ORDER BY sortval ASC
1782401522.0840.002 [82] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageDepth >=0 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1782401522.0880.004 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1782401522.08870.0007 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1782401522.09170.003Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template.html
1782401522.09170.0001 [6] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1782401522.09250.0007 [4] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1782401522.09290.0005 [29] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1782401522.09560.0026 [10] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1782401522.09610.0006 [7] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1782401522.09650.0004 [9] Using template: /templates/navigation/ps_nav_template_children.html
1782401522.09860.0021 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' OR pageSortPath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1782401522.09970.0011 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageHidden=0 AND pageNew=0 AND pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition
1782401522.10270.0031 [1] Using template: /templates/navigation/breadcrumbs.html
1782401522.10320.0005Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1782401522.10350.0003 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_authors WHERE authorID='30' LIMIT 1
1782401522.10440.0009Using template: /templates/blog/author.html
1782401522.10480.0004 [1] SELECT SQL_CALC_FOUND_ROWS DISTINCT tbl.* FROM ( SELECT idx.itemID, main.*, idx2.indexValue as sortval FROM swt_blog_index idx JOIN swt_blog_posts main ON idx.itemID=main.postID AND idx.itemKey='postID' JOIN swt_blog_index idx2 ON idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey='postID' AND idx2.indexKey='_id' WHERE 1=1 AND ((idx.indexKey='postSlug' AND idx.indexValue='hummingbird-hawk-moth-the-hum-of-summer')) AND idx.itemID=idx2.itemID AND idx.itemKey=idx2.itemKey GROUP BY idx.itemID, idx2.indexValue, postID ) as tbl WHERE (postStatus='Published' AND postDateTime<='2026-06-25 15:32:00' ) GROUP BY itemID, sortval ORDER BY sortval ASC LIMIT 0, 1
1782401522.10780.003 [1] SELECT FOUND_ROWS() AS `count`
1782401522.10840.0005 [1] Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1782401522.11090.0026Using template: /templates/blog/comment_form.html
1782401522.11180.0009 [18] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_comments WHERE 1=1 AND postID=3955 AND commentStatus='LIVE' ORDER BY FIELD(webmentionType, 'like', 'repost', 'comment', NULL) ASC, commentDateTime ASC
1782401522.17250.0607 [18] Using template: /templates/blog/comment.html
1782401522.17630.0038Using template: /templates/blog/post.html
1782401522.17650.0002 [1] SELECT * FROM swt_blog_authors WHERE authorID='30' LIMIT 1
1782401522.17750.001 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/what-we-do' OR pageSortPath='/what-we-do' LIMIT 1
1782401522.17850.001 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-002' LIMIT 1
1782401522.17930.0008 [7] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-002%' AND pageDepth >=1 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1782401522.18220.0029 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1782401522.18310.0009 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1782401522.18580.0027 [6] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1782401522.18690.0011 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/make-a-difference' OR pageSortPath='/make-a-difference' LIMIT 1
1782401522.18770.0008 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-005' LIMIT 1
1782401522.18830.0006 [38] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-005%' ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1782401522.19160.0033 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1782401522.19220.0006 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1782401522.19490.0027 [10] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1782401522.19850.0035 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/visit' OR pageSortPath='/visit' LIMIT 1
1782401522.19940.001 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-004' LIMIT 1
1782401522.20010.0007 [30] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-004%' AND pageDepth >=1 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1782401522.20330.0032 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1782401522.20390.0007 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1782401522.20680.0029 [29] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1782401522.20930.0025 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/make-a-difference' OR pageSortPath='/make-a-difference' LIMIT 1
1782401522.21020.0009 [1] SELECT pageID, pageParentID, pageDepth, pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition='000-005' LIMIT 1
1782401522.2110.0008 [11] SELECT * FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageNew=0 AND pageHidden=0 AND pageTreePosition LIKE '000-005%' AND pageDepth >=1 AND pageDepth<=2 ORDER BY pageTreePosition ASC
1782401522.2140.003 [1] SELECT pageTreePosition FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pagePath='/news/post' LIMIT 1
1782401522.21480.0008 [2] SELECT pageID FROM swt_pages_staging WHERE pageTreePosition IN ('000-006-001', '000-006', '000') ORDER BY pageTreePosition DESC
1782401522.21740.0026 [10] Using template: /templates/navigation/footer-nav.html
1782401522.2190.0015Request time: 0.2241
1782401522.2190Process time: 0.224
1782401522.2190Memory: 1.6403