These Are Big

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Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi) – You hear them first coming out of the dark like a quickening purring without any sense of direction. You then feel them as the air from their rapidly moving wings wafts around you as they circle. Then you see them, then you don’t, for they are so, so very quick and powerful in flight you can lose track of them quite easily. They are the supersonic jets of the moth world. And these are big with a wingspan of up to 90 mm (3 1/2 in). Yet in the light of day they are like daft kittens, and they will happily sit on the end of your finger, even your nose if you wanted to take things that far. The cover of night is their world, and they are masters of it. It is just they have a thing for our artificial lights. They are bedazzled and befuddled by them, sitting hoplessly in a trance-like state beneath their glare, sometimes for many hours until daybreak. Double-click image to enlarge.

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© Peter Hillman ♦ 20th May 2020 ♦ Rear garden, South Staffordshire ♦ Nikon D7200

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