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.

Comments: new identification section added from Jason D. Roberts 8/2009

BAMONA Shop

Check out our new Fall 2025 Classic BAMONA Logo Shirts and cozy Native Plants Hoodies!

Please donate!

We depend on donations to keep Butterflies and Moths of North America freely available. We want to express our gratitude to all who showed their support by making a contribution this year. You can donate to support this project at any time.

Advertise with us!

Do you have a product or service that you think would interest BAMONA users? If you would like to advertise on this website, contact us by email, or use the contact form and select the "Advertising" category.

Verified Sightings

Displaying 25 - 48 of 1957 verified sightings

Filter by Region

Observation date: Jul 21, 2025

Submitted by: Razzlefish

Region: Ontario, Canada

Verified by: rogerdowner

Verified date: Jul 24, 2025

Butterflies and Moths of North America

collecting and sharing data about Lepidoptera

Please donate!

Advertise with us!

Verified Sightings

Advertisement

Hummingbird Clearwing
Hemaris thysbe (Fabricius, 1775)