#clearwings

[heracliteanfire]

The eight species of clearwing moth I’ve recorded in my garden this year, all attracted to pheromone lures.

Red-belted Clearwing, Six-belted Clearwing, Lunar Hornet Moth, Red-tipped Clearwing, Currant Clearwing, Orange-tailed Clearwing, Raspberry Clearwing, Yellow-legged Clearwing.

[pogomcl]

Six-belted Clearwing, Bembecia ichneumoniformis Canon 7D EF 1002.8 f/2.8 1/250 iso:500 Milovice, Czech Republic 7/24/2016

[onenicebugperday]

Wasp-mimic clearwing moth, Euhagena emphytiformis, Sesiidae

Found in the United States

Photo 1 by ellen5

[internetdruid]

A Hummingbird clearwing! (Hemaris thysbe)

[heartnosekid]

hummingbird clearwing moth (hemaris thysbe) | moanrchmanorfl on ig

[herpsandbirds]

Pink-tipped Satyr (Cithaerias aurora), family Nymphalidae, Apuya Trail, Ecuador

photograph by Chan Wah Choy

[artifacts-and-arthropods]

The Oriental Blue Clearwing Moth: these moths were regarded as a "lost species" for more than 130 years, until they were finally sighted again in 2013

For more than 130 years, the Oriental blue clearwing moth (Heterosphecia tawonoides) was known only from a single, badly damaged specimen that was collected in Sumatra in 1887. There were no recorded sightings of this species again until 2013, when entomologist Dr. Marta Skowron Volponi unexpectedly found the moths feeding on salt deposits that had accumulated along the riverbanks in Malaysia's lowland rainforest.

These moths were observed by researchers again in 2016 and 2017, and research indicates that the moths are actually bee-mimics, as they mimic the appearance, sound, behavior, and flight patterns of local bees. Their fuzzy, bright blue appearance might seem a little out of place for a bee-mimic, but those features do appear in several different bee species throughout Southeast Asia.

When the moths are in flight, they bear a particularly strong resemblance to the bees of the genus Thyreus (i.e. cuckoo bees, otherwise known as cloak-and-dagger bees), several of which are also bright blue, with banded markings, dark blue wings, fuzzy legs, and smooth, rounded antennae. The physical resemblance is compounded by the acoustic and behavioral mimicry that occurs when the moths are in flight.

Cloak-and-Dagger Bees: the image at the top shows an Indo-Malayan cloak-and-dagger bee (Thyreus novaehollandiae) in a sleeping position, holding itself upright with its mandibles clamped onto a twig, while the image at the bottom shows a Himalayan cloak-and-dagger bee (T. himalayensis) resting in the same position

The moths also engage in "mud-puddling" among the various bees that congregate along the riverbanks; mud-puddling is the process whereby an insect (usually a bee or a butterfly) draws nutrients from the fluids found in puddles, wet sand, decaying plant matter, carrion, animal waste, sweat, tears, and/or blood. According to researchers, the Oriental blue clearwing moth was the only lepidopteran that was seen mud-puddling among the local bees.

Dr. Skowron Volponi commented on the unusual appearance and behavior of these moths:

You think about moths and you envision a grey, hairy insect that is attracted to light. But this species is dramatically different—it is beautiful, shiny blue in sunlight and it comes out during the day; and it is a master of disguise, mimicking bees on multiple levels and even hanging out with them. The Oriental blue clearwing is just two centimeters in size, but there are so many fascinating things about them and so much more we hope to learn.

This species is still incredibly vulnerable, as it faces threats like deforestation, pollution, and climate change. The president of Global Wildlife Conservation, which is an organization that seeks to rediscover "lost species," added:

After learning about this incredible rediscovery, we hope that tourists visiting Taman Negara National Park and picnicking on the riverbanks—the home of these beautiful clearwing moths—will remember to tread lightly and to take their trash out of the park with them. We also recommend that Americans learn about palm oil production, which is one of the primary causes of deforestation in Malaysia.

Sources & More Info:

Phys.org: Bee-Mimicking Clearwing Moth Buzzes Back to Life After 130 Years

Mongabay News: Moth Rediscovered in Malaysia Mimics Appearance and Behavior of Bees to Escape Predators

Journal of Tropical Conservation Science: Lost Species of Bee-Mimicking Clearwing Moth, H. tawonoides, Rediscovered in Peninsular Malaysia's Primary Rainforest

Frontiers in Zoology: Southeast Asian Clearwing Moths Buzz like their Model Bees

Royal Society Publishing: Moving like a Model - mimicry of hymenopteran flight trajectories by clearwing moths of Southeast Asian rainforests

Medium: Rediscovery in a Glint of Blue

re:wild.org: The "Search for Lost Species" Project

[celestialmacros]

Fond of pink

Hummingbird Clearwing moths (Hemaris thysbe)

Midsummer 2023

Southeastern Pennsylvania

[hellsitegenetics]

hey!! I’m doing insect and spider research and I would love to know what type of organism (hopefully an insect or spider lol) the research as a whole/concept would be!! I’m looking at insect community diversity and trying to connect it to red oak tree genetic diversity! I’m essentially laying sticky insect traps on tree bark, collecting the traps, and looking at them under a dissection microscope and IDing them to the family level, recording which families I find and how many of each were on each trap on each tree. Then I’ll compare it to previously collected red oak tree genetic info to see if abundance/diversity is related to individual tree genetics or genetically similar trees!

thank you, as a silly creature lover I love and respect your blog lol

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Closest match: Synanthedon andrenaeformis genome assembly, chromosome: 21 Common name: Orange-tailed Clearwing

(image source)

[bogcreacher]

SALAD

[antiqueanimals]

Animal Coloration: An Account of the Principal Facts and Theories Relating to the Colors and Markings of Animals. Written by Frank E. Beddard. 1895.

Internet Archive

[vandaliatraveler]

Summer has arrived, and with it, the single greatest proliferation of life in Central Appalachia. This is the time of great, ostentatious wildflowers, one more showy and resplendent than the next, each competing with the other for the swarms of pollinators that have emerged to drink from the earth's sweet nectar pots, find their mates, and plant their eggs in the all-too-brief span before their whirring energies have faded into oblivion. At no time do I feel more connected to life's urgent, relentless pulse than in the electric heat of summer; the rich meadows, bogs, streambanks, and hedgerows are my temples and the tiny creatures that come to them to feed and renew their kind are the only intermediaries I need to realize true spiritual peace and joy.

The photos above are from a late afternoon bike ride on Deckers Creek Trail.

[life-on-our-planet]

Clearwing moths are a family of moths known for their Batesian mimicry of various Hymenoptera including wasps, hornets, and bees. Their large size and hovering movements mean that they're also often mistaken for hummingbirds. ��JanV

[onenicebugperday]

Clearwing tussock moth, Carriola ecnomoda, Lymantriinae

Found in Southeast Asia

Photo 1 by leptonia, 2 by rejoicegassah, 3 by dhfischer, 4 by antoniogiudici, 5 by mark027, 6-8 by ivijayanand, and 9 for scale by soooonchye

[moths-daily]

Moth Of The Day #287

SIx-belted Clearwing

Bembecia ichneumoniformis

From the sesiidae family. They have a wingspan of 15-24 mm. They inhabit chalk and coastal grassland with grassy swards, rough upland fields, embankments, quarries and cliffs. They can be found in most of Europe and Asia Minor, the Caucasus, northern Iran and the Near East.

Image sources: [1] [2]

[internetdruid]

New species of Clearwing Moth (Paranthrenella tricincta) discovered in Malaysia! x.