Snowberry Clearwing
Hemaris diffinis (Boisduval, 1836)
Family: Sphingidae
Subfamily: Macroglossinae
Identification: Adults are quite variable in appearance; Bumblebee mimic. The thorax is golden or olive-golden in color, abdomen is black dorsally with 1-2 segments just prior to terminal end being yellow to various extent, while black ventrally. H. diffinis is the only eastern species to exhibit blue abdominal tufts on the first black segment in some freshly emerged specimens. Wings mostly clear with reddish brown terminal borders and dark scaling along veins. While wing maculation is too variable to be 100% diagnostic, diffinis typically has very thin terminal borders and the discal cell is elongate and without scales. However, diffinis can always be distinguished from gracilis and thysbe by two diagnostic characteristics: 1) the black band that crosses the eye and travels down the lateral side of the thorax; 2) diffinis always has black legs.
Wing Span: 1 1/4 - 2 inches (3.2 - 5 cm).
Life History: Adults fly swiftly during the day. Caterpillars pupate in cocoons spun in leaf litter on the ground.
Flight: Two broods from March-August.
Caterpillar Hosts: Snowberry (Symphoricarpos), honeysuckle (Lonicera), dogbane (Apocynum), and dwarf bush honeysuckle (Diervilla lonicera).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers including lantana, dwarf bush honeysuckle, snowberry, orange hawkweed, thistles, lilac, and Canada violet.
Habitat: A wide variety of open habitats, streamsides, fields, gardens, and suburbs.
Range: East of the Continental Divide, through most of the United States to Maine and Florida. Some overlap with Hemaris thetis just east of the Divide.
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 description from coordinator Jason D. Roberts added 8/2009.
Get your BAMONA Gear!
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 337 - 360 of 1978 verified sightings
Observation date: Aug 16, 2020
Submitted by: Made in the sha...
Region: Marshall County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Dec 10, 2020
Observation date: Jun 08, 2017
Submitted by: Walpolema
Region: Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Dec 09, 2020
Observation date: Jun 20, 2018
Submitted by: TheNarWhales
Region: Sarpy County, Nebraska, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Dec 04, 2020
Observation date: Jun 28, 2019
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Nov 22, 2020
Observation date: May 29, 2019
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Nov 22, 2020
Observation date: Aug 30, 2017
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Nov 22, 2020
Observation date: Jul 20, 2020
Submitted by: Dave Webb
Region: Harford County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Nov 01, 2020
Observation date: Aug 16, 2016
Submitted by: photosbychrisdenny
Region: Floyd County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Oct 23, 2020
Observation date: May 22, 2019
Submitted by: wade wander
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Oct 13, 2020
Observation date: Oct 01, 2020
Submitted by: John LeBlanc
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Oct 02, 2020
Observation date: Oct 01, 2020
Submitted by: John LeBlanc
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Oct 01, 2020
Observation date: Sep 28, 2020
Submitted by: John LeBlanc
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Sep 29, 2020
Observation date: Sep 10, 2020
Submitted by: John LeBlanc
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 10, 2020
Observation date: Aug 15, 2020
Submitted by: Mmutzig
Region: Tulsa County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 09, 2020
Observation date: Aug 21, 2020
Submitted by: treys grammy
Region: Benton County, Arkansas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 09, 2020
Observation date: Aug 30, 2020
Submitted by: photomoth
Region: Riley County, Kansas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 09, 2020
Observation date: Sep 06, 2020
Submitted by: Blev
Region: Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 09, 2020
Observation date: Sep 05, 2020
Submitted by: Cyrus Li
Region: Montgomery County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 05, 2020
Observation date: Sep 02, 2020
Submitted by: Goodkarmatx
Region: Collin County, Texas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Sep 02, 2020
Observation date: Jul 21, 2020
Submitted by: Donna Rocco
Region: Salem County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Sep 02, 2020
Observation date: Aug 24, 2020
Submitted by: Mcgildow
Region: Franklin County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 30, 2020
Observation date: Jul 14, 2020
Submitted by: eattaway92
Region: Lake County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 29, 2020
Observation date: Aug 24, 2020
Submitted by: DonnaBenjamin
Region: Cecil County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 28, 2020
Observation date: Aug 27, 2020
Submitted by: John LeBlanc
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Aug 27, 2020
- ‹ previous
- 15 of 83
- next ›