Silver-striped Hawk-moth. Photo: Chris Griffin
Silver-striped Hawk-moth. Photo: Chris Griffin
Chris travelled from his home in Somerset especially to photograph this Silver-striped Hawk-moth found at Weston on Portland on 20/09/17.
This is an immigrant moth which has two generations, May-October though it is usually moths from the second generation which reach the UK occurring from August.
The beautiful pattern and colour of this large moth, forewing 33-35 mm, and the prominent eyes make for a super experience for anyone lucky enough to see one. It flies from dusk and visits nectar flowers as well as Ivy. A good reason not to cut back flowering ivy before the end of Autumn.
It has a variety of foodplants abroad and is resident on the north coast of Africa from where it colonises southern Europe each summer producing up to two generations from May-October.
In the UK , most immigrants have been recorded along the south coast, where the largest annual total in 1885 was 41. Since then numbers have been much less with a total of 14 recorded in 1963
Many thanks to Chris of Griffin Wildlife Photography for sending us these photos so that we can all enjoy this stunning moth.