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.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 73 - 96 of 1950 verified sightings
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Observation date: May 24, 2023
Submitted by: SDozzler
Region: Dallas County, Texas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Jun 22, 2023
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Observation date: Jun 20, 2023
Submitted by: sq85
Region: Sumner County, Kansas, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Jun 20, 2023
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/hemarisdiffinis41314.jpg?itok=EJoN6v6k)
Observation date: Apr 13, 2014
Submitted by: Emily Newman
Region: Carter County, Kentucky, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jun 19, 2023
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/20220903_120657.jpg?itok=YufZTGFp)
Observation date: Sep 03, 2022
Submitted by: Mitothee
Region: Lake County, Illinois, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jun 18, 2023
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Observation date: Jun 11, 2023
Submitted by: James Steen
Region: Sedgwick County, Kansas, United States
Verified by: James Steen
Verified date: Jun 11, 2023
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Observation date: May 17, 2023
Submitted by: pkmcp
Region: Brown County, Texas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: May 25, 2023
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Observation date: May 21, 2023
Submitted by: KarenV
Region: Dallas County, Texas, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: May 25, 2023
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Observation date: May 21, 2023
Submitted by: gjkoppel
Region: Butler County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: May 22, 2023
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Observation date: May 13, 2023
Submitted by: Rjfischer
Region: Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: May 14, 2023
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/3o1a8553.jpg?itok=sLoidzf_)
Observation date: Apr 20, 2023
Submitted by: Spunkybart
Region: Richmond, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Apr 21, 2023
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/20230315_111245.jpg?itok=-nOjMfAn)
Observation date: Mar 15, 2023
Submitted by: OkieMae918
Region: Tulsa County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Apr 03, 2023
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/p1040634.jpg?itok=JqWnqqlt)
Observation date: Jul 16, 2012
Submitted by: Betsy Higgins
Region: Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Mar 18, 2023
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/dsc_0258_2-denoiseai-standard.jpg?itok=gLjM9Mw6)
Observation date: Sep 04, 2021
Submitted by: Chip Gilbert
Region: Greenville County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Mar 12, 2023
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Observation date: Jul 25, 2022
Submitted by: trudyslarks
Region: Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States
Verified by: Tom Middagh
Verified date: Mar 11, 2023
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/20210707_hemaris_diffinis_-_hitchcock_nature_center_ia_3.jpg?itok=lu-5Et5S)
Observation date: Jul 07, 2021
Submitted by: naj.pilla
Region: Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States
Verified by: jamesdurbin
Verified date: Mar 01, 2023
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Observation date: Jun 17, 2021
Submitted by: naj.pilla
Region: Porter County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Feb 20, 2023
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Observation date: Jun 29, 2016
Submitted by: montreatifly
Region: Cherokee County, North Carolina, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Feb 09, 2023
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Observation date: Aug 25, 2016
Submitted by: camino_1
Region: United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Jan 28, 2023
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Observation date: Aug 28, 2021
Submitted by: StacyN
Region: Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States
Verified by: stomlins701
Verified date: Dec 09, 2022
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Observation date: Jul 30, 2022
Submitted by: heinert
Region: Burleigh County, North Dakota, United States
Verified by: Tom Middagh
Verified date: Nov 20, 2022
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Observation date: Jun 03, 2022
Submitted by: tnjbodker
Region: Maury County, Tennessee, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Nov 16, 2022
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Observation date: Sep 12, 2022
Submitted by: Friardopey
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Nov 09, 2022
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/img_4659_7.jpg?itok=vR9DvSNv)
Observation date: Aug 03, 2016
Submitted by: Sue Bocchicchio
Region: Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Oct 28, 2022
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/snowberry_clearwing_30.jpg?itok=pdxmaBMh)
Observation date: Oct 23, 2022
Submitted by: DoloresB
Region: Suffolk County, New York, United States
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Oct 24, 2022
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