In the middle of summer, an unusual insect hangs over flower beds, collecting pollen with its long proboscis. At first glance, it can be compared to a hummingbird, so quickly it flaps its wings. In fact, this insect is from the hawk hawk family, it is considered a butterfly.
Strange "birds"
In the summer you can see strange guests, quickly fluttering from one flower to another. They hover over marigolds and marigolds, for some reason remain indifferent to rose bushes, lower their tiny proboscis inside the flowers and just as quickly fly away.
The first thought most people have is “Where does the hummingbird come from in our area?”. We are not in America, which means that the mysterious guests have nothing in common with the famous bird. Then who are these small, fast-moving creatures? Allow me to imagine - this is an ordinary language. The photo of the insect below will provide an opportunity to carefully see and evaluate the resemblance to a hummingbird. Butterflies use their wings to hover over a flower for a few seconds and drink its nectar, much like a bird does.
Basic characteristics of an insect
Proboscis hawk,or common tongue, it is distinguished by gray front wings, on which a transverse pattern is inscribed, while the rear ones are decorated with a dark border on an orange background. In the wingspan, the butterfly's wings open up to 50 mm, and their flapping is so swift that it is almost impossible to see them.
The insect is of medium size. Its abdomen is adorned with a tassel of hairs, and it looks a bit like a bird's tail. That is why hawk moth (common tongue) is associated with hummingbirds by many. Butterfly caterpillars are green to dark brown in color, however, before turning into a mature individual, the pupa turns red.
Insect produces offspring twice during the summer. Caterpillars of the first generation, preferring the flooded places of the forest edges, appear in thickets of bedstraw and chickweed. As a rule, this happens during early autumn (September, early October). The appearance of the second generation occurs in the summer (June, August).
The common tongue is a heat-loving insect. It appears at the beginning of summer. Insects arrive from the south, but representatives of the second generation with autumn cold fly away to regions with warm climatic conditions.
Distribution areas
On the territory of the Crimea, the common tongue is able to give three generations during the year. The insect is so adapted to the warm climate that it is found almost everywhere. Insects are widely distributed in Europe, in the territories of North Africa. This species of hawk hawk produces offspring in Asia and SouthIndia. In the territories of the countries of the former CIS, the common tongue settles in the southern and central regions up to the Far East. On the fertile, flowering lands of the Kuban, an insect is able to breed three times per season. In winter, hawk hawk retains its appearance, being in the state of both a butterfly and a chrysalis. At the first warm, even winter, rays of the sun, it tends to fly.
Insect population
The number of representatives of the hawk family varies greatly from year to year. This is due to a number of reasons:
- a sharp change in weather conditions, not typical for the places of residence and breeding of the species;
- pollution of habitats with chemical products;
- sudden temperature changes;
- unpleasant weather during the migration period.
During favorable periods, the size of the butterfly population can be quite large, and in difficult years, the number of insects decreases.
Interesting facts
The common tongue, hovering over a flower, does not touch its leaves, lowering only its proboscis inside.
Hawk hawk is able to fly at speeds up to 50 km per hour. This speed gives him the ability to cover very long distances.
One insect on a sunny day pollinates about 30 flowers per minute.
In 2007, hawk hawk pupae and butterflies were sent into space aboard a biosatellite in order to find out how insects would endure space overloads and the state of weightlessness. The scientists' project was called "Space Butterfly".
The oleander hawk moth species is protected and listed in the Red Book.
