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Photo#415259
Bee or Moth? - Hemaris diffinis

Bee or Moth? - Hemaris diffinis
Powell County, Kentucky, USA
June 20, 2010
Size: 1.5 - 2.0 inches
Saw this odd bug with other bee specimen getting nectar from my bee balm plants. At first I thought it was a small bird or a very large bee. After looking at the photo it could be a moth. The wings do not show up very well in the photo because it was hovering over the flowers like a hummingbird. The wings were translucent and a light yellowish tan. This is the second year that this bug or one like it has been seen at the same plants. Does any one have a clue what it is?

Hemaris diffinis - Snowberry Clearwing - Hodges#7855
Moved from Sphinx Moths.

Moved
Moved from ID Request.

Moth
It's a Sphinx Moth, possibly the Snowberry Clearwing (Hemaris diffinis), but I'll let an expert make the final determination.

 
Bee or Moth?
Thanks Brian. After looking at everything I could find about moths that is the one I thought it most resembled. The coloring was a little different but it was moving so fast it was hard to get a good look at it. Plus I thought it could have been a big bee so it freaked me out a little. Now that I know it's a moth I am going to try to get a good look at it. Thanks again.

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