There is an alien in my flowers!

[texasgirl]

Okay, we thought this was a hummer because it swept around us like one and it's wings were buzzing like one and it is as big as one, but, LOOK at it. WHAT is this?
It looks like a moth, but, it's so big.

 

[GrillingFool]

I'm pretty sure you are kinda right....

It's a hummingbird moth!

very cool. Great photos!

 

[texasgirl]

I'm pretty sure you are kinda right....

It's a hummingbird moth!

very cool. Great photos!

I honestly thought you were pulling my leg, until I checked yahoo images. I never heard of one, much less seen one.

 

[AllenOK]

A month ago, we had a hummingbird fly right up to our sliding back door, and look into the house. It hovered for about a minute, then took off. Since then, I've seen a couple more. Our neighbor a couple doors down has a lot of flowers out to attract hummers.

 

[expatgirl]

What a neat picture you took!!! Good photography skills!

 

[sattie]

I love those! Use to catch those as a kid and even bigger ones. I think there are Wolf Moths to.

 

[jpmcgrew]

Yep, a humming bird moth they are really cool.

 

[GrillingFool]

Wait until you see a CICADIA WASP.
These things are huge too. Big enough to kill
and fly off with a cicadia.
I was happily watching a cicadia on my porch one
evening when WHAMMMM! this monstrous bug
dive bombed the cicadia! It was like a hawk and a
rabbit. The cicadia never knew what hit it.
I was looking at my cicadia, with a huge wasp on its
back. Then, they flew away.

Luckily, cicadia wasps are not generally aggressive.

 

[sattie]

I have seen those too... we always called them locust killers as kids. They are rather menacing as they dig burrows in the dirt. I a friend's yard was covered in these things, just flying around. I could never go to his house unless they carried me to the door! Those things really spooked me.

 

[Katie H]

Wow, what a cool picture. Amazing proboscis on that moth, too.

We have plenty of hummingbirds here, but I've never seen the moths. I'll be looking now.

 

[Jeekinz]

Interesting site: What's That Bug?

Nice pic.

 

[jeninga75]

Nice pics! Very pretty moth. I love moths, even more than butterflies. Butterflies are pretty, but it seems moths have more of a soft, mysterious look to them. I love Luna Moths.

 

[texasgirl]

Wow, what a cool picture. Amazing proboscis on that moth, too.

It was about 5 or 6 inches. That is what had dh running in here to get me, asking me what it was.

We have plenty of hummingbirds here, but I've never seen the moths. I'll be looking now.

We have 2 feeders, so, we get lots of hummers, but, I have never seen one of these before either. I hovered right by my head while I was taking these. DH said it was sucking my brains out.

 

[GrillingFool]

"Leaving Lepidoptera.....
Pleeeease don't touch the displays, little boy!
Um hmm..... cute...."
---Vincent Price