Tag Archives: White-lined Sphinx Moth

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So many people have told me they have never seen one before, but this summer there are hundreds upon hundreds here on the Mendonoma Coast. Others have told me they are seeing them in other parts of the country. Are they having a mast year? What are the consequences of so many of these moths in a relatively small area? Their caterpillars are voracious eaters, I've read. But the beautiful moths are pollinators of various flowers. Rozanne Rapozo photographed one in her garden.

Paul Brewer also had these moths visit his garden in Gualala. You can see the very loooong tongue these moths have to reach down into flowers. They are feeding on nectar and they get pollen on their faces. Then when they go to another flowers, they pollinate it with the pollen on their faces. Win/win!

Thanks to Rozanne and Paul for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

Foggy and more fog. No wind and the temps are mild. We may get a little rain from the hurricane (!) to the south. That's forecast for tomorrow.

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White-lined Sphinx Moths, also called Hummingbird Moths, are here on the Mendonoma Coast in unbelievable numbers. In past years, I'd be lucky to receive one or two sightings of these beautiful moths. In the past week or so I've received many, many sightings of them. For whatever reason, they are having a banner year - a mast year - and they are being seen in the daylight hours, which is also unusual.

Mary Lou Flint photographed one feeding on agapanthus. She said there were three or four in her garden.

And Michael Combs found one feeding on nasturtiams.

Jeanne Barry also found one in her garden.

This morning I saw two feeding in abelia, a plant loved by Bumblebees, Monarch Butterflies, and now White-lined Sphinx Moths! I'll be posting more about these beauties soon.

Thanks to Mary Lou, Michael and Jeanne (nice name!) for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

After a very foggy, drippy morning, the sun broke through, but temps are quite mild, low 60's.

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Grace O'Malley spotted this Hummingbird Moth, Hyles lineata, in her garden near Timber Cove. In Grace's first photo you can see the very long tongue of this moth.

Grace wrote,“A Hummingbird Moth appeared in my garden, hovering around and sipping nectar from the Giant Impatiens.  The U.S. Forest Service advises ‘like most moths, they have a very long tongue which they carry rolled under their chins’ and unfurl to reach the nectar of the long-necked flowers they prefer."

These spectacular moths are most often seen around dusk. Thanks to Grace for allowing me to share her photos with you here.

The Mendonoma coast is free of smoke from the terrible fires. Many evacuees have come here and their stories are heartbreaking. Rain is in our forecast for next Wednesday. We hope it will come sooner than that and put out all the fires.

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Bob Rutemoeller and Mary Sue Ittner noticed this beautiful moth feeding on a plant in their garden. It's a Hummingbird Moth, or a White-lined Sphinx Moth.

This moth has a very long tongue, with which she sips nectar from flowers. You can also see this moth's antennae, a giveaway that it is a moth, not a bird.

Thanks to Bob for allowing me to share his photos with you here.