Attributes of Hemaris thysbe
Hummingbird Clearwing
Hemaris thysbe (Fabricius, 1775)
Family: Sphingidae
Subfamily: Macroglossinae
Identification: Adult appearance is variable; Hummingbird mimic. The thorax is olive to golden-olive in color dorsally, yellow ventrally; abdomen is dark burgundy (sometimes almost black) both dorsally and ventrally, with light olive to dark golden patches dorsally. Wings mostly clear with reddish brown terminal borders and dark scaling along veins. While wing maculation is too variable to be 100% diagnostic, thysbe typically has thick terminal borders and the discal cell is typically covered or bisected by dark scales. However, thysbe can always be distinguished from gracilis and diffinis by two characteristics: 1) the lack of any banding on the lateral side of the thorax; 2) thysbe always has yellowish or pale colored legs.
Wing Span: 1 9/16 - 2 3/16 inches (4 - 5.5 cm).
Life History: Adults fly during the day, and hover at flowers to sip nectar. Caterpillars pupate in cocoons spun at the soil surface.
Flight: Two broods in the south from March-June and August-October; one brood in the north from April-August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Honeysuckle (Lonicera), snowberry (Symphoricarpos), hawthorns (Crataegus), cherries and plums (Prunus), and European cranberry bush (Viburnum opulus).
Adult Food: Nectar from a wide variety of flowers including Japanese honeysuckle, beebalm, red clover, lilac, phlox, snowberry, cranberry, blueberry, vetch, and thistles.
Habitat: Open and second-growth habitats, gardens, and suburbs.
Range: Alaska and the Northwest Territories south through British Columbia to Oregon; east through the Great Plains and the Great Lakes area to Maine and Newfoundland; south to Florida and Texas.
Conservation: Not usually required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
Taxonomy Notes:
The map below displays all verified sighting records in the BAMONA database for this species. Each record is indicated with a yellow dot. The orange dots on the map provide access to information about the 400 most recently verified sightings of this species. In some instances, there are several records at the same location. Use the table view to access these records.
Instructions: Click on the map and move your mouse to pan.
Zoom by using the plus [+] and minus [-] on the left side of the map.
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The fifty most recently verified sightings are below. See more recently verified sightings of all species.
| Observation Date | Submitter | Region |
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| April 21, 2013 | mdolomieu1 | Greene County, Missouri, United States | April 22, 2013 | Details | |
| April 21, 2013 | CA Ivy | Sequoyah County, Oklahoma, United States | April 22, 2013 | Details | |
| April 14, 2013 | Cdubyabee15 | Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States | April 14, 2013 | Details | |
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July 16, 2011 | Ilona L. | Dane County, Wisconsin, United States | February 15, 2013 | Details |
| May 06, 2007 | curtis.lehman (Paul Dennehy) | Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, United States | February 11, 2013 | Details | |
| August 15, 1997 | curtis.lehman (Paul Dennehy) | Fulton County, Pennsylvania, United States | February 11, 2013 | Details | |
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August 11, 2012 | cat0271 | Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States | February 09, 2013 | Details |
| August 16, 2012 | toddewen | Ingham County, Michigan, United States | February 08, 2013 | Details | |
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July 28, 2010 | Debbie Taylor | Pope County, Arkansas, United States | January 02, 2013 | Details |
| July 28, 2011 | jrscappini | Kent County, Rhode Island, United States | December 23, 2012 | Details | |
| September 27, 2012 | garylittle | Muscogee County, Georgia, United States | November 01, 2012 | Details | |
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September 28, 2012 | garylittle | Muscogee County, Georgia, United States | November 01, 2012 | Details |
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September 01, 2008 | mskayak | Kent County, Rhode Island, United States | October 15, 2012 | Details |
| August 04, 2012 | ellenjones6 | Franklin County, New York, United States | October 15, 2012 | Details | |
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August 04, 2012 | ellenjones6 | Franklin County, New York, United States | October 15, 2012 | Details |
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August 26, 2012 | Chip Krilowicz | Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States | October 13, 2012 | Details |
| August 25, 2012 | Maryann C | Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States | October 03, 2012 | Details | |
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August 29, 2011 | mskayak | Dukes (Martha's Vineyard) County, Massachusetts, United States | September 28, 2012 | Details |
| July 31, 2011 | G_G_G | Quebec, Canada | September 27, 2012 | Details | |
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August 18, 2012 | novembergale | Chautauqua County, New York, United States | September 23, 2012 | Details |
| August 24, 2012 | prblmsau | Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States | September 22, 2012 | Details | |
| August 26, 2012 | WrEgl | Lowndes County, Georgia, United States | September 21, 2012 | Details | |
| August 04, 2012 | springleaf | Orleans County, Vermont, United States | September 17, 2012 | Details | |
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July 20, 2012 | BetsyNYC | Suffolk County, New York, United States | September 17, 2012 | Details |
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July 17, 2012 | HKusmierz | Washington County, Rhode Island, United States | September 16, 2012 | Details |
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August 26, 2012 | skenaga | Madison County, Indiana, United States | September 13, 2012 | Details |
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July 21, 2012 | rsone57 | Oneida County, New York, United States | September 11, 2012 | Details |
| July 18, 2012 | geocachelinda | Saratoga County, New York, United States | September 11, 2012 | Details | |
| July 24, 2012 | khemeon | Bennington County, Vermont, United States | September 10, 2012 | Details | |
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August 15, 2012 | kelly | Bossier Parish, Louisiana, United States | September 10, 2012 | Details |
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July 29, 2012 | Idun Guenther | Pocahontas County, West Virginia, United States | September 10, 2012 | Details |
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September 07, 2012 | gheimer | Ontario, Canada | September 09, 2012 | Details |
| September 02, 2012 | MarFole | Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States | September 08, 2012 | Details | |
| September 03, 2012 | Matt ODonnell | Prince William County, Virginia, United States | September 03, 2012 | Details | |
| July 20, 2012 | ybhpkdl-2 | Elmore County, Alabama, United States | September 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 02, 2012 | jbrehm | Langlade County, Wisconsin, United States | September 01, 2012 | Details | |
| August 11, 2011 | cruelnight | Manitoba, Canada | August 31, 2012 | Details | |
| August 24, 2012 | toddewen | Ingham County, Michigan, United States | August 31, 2012 | Details | |
| August 30, 2012 | Nikki Taylor | Michigan, United States | August 31, 2012 | Details | |
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July 10, 2012 | OutlanderGirl | Baltimore County, Maryland, United States | August 30, 2012 | Details |
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August 22, 2008 | greg4sx20is | Lake County, Indiana, United States | August 30, 2012 | Details |
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August 21, 2012 | greg4sx20is | Porter County, Indiana, United States | August 30, 2012 | Details |
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August 13, 2012 | doeffinger | Baltimore County, Maryland, United States | August 30, 2012 | Details |
| July 14, 2012 | mom2krb | Cayuga County, New York, United States | August 29, 2012 | Details | |
| July 25, 2012 | mom2krb | Erie County, New York, United States | August 29, 2012 | Details | |
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May 27, 2012 | Diane | Ontario, Canada | August 29, 2012 | Details |
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May 20, 2012 | sharin | Clarion County, Pennsylvania, United States | August 29, 2012 | Details |
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August 13, 2012 | hdiodati | Quebec, Canada | August 28, 2012 | Details |
| August 19, 2012 | mothpeterson | Will County, Illinois, United States | August 27, 2012 | Details | |
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August 27, 2009 | AngelaCoco | Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States | August 22, 2012 | Details |


























