Sesia bembeciformis
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
Sesia bembeciformis, the lunar hornet moth, is a moth of the family Sesiidae. It is found in Europe. The wingspan is 32–42 mm. The length of the forewings is 15–19 mm. Like all moths of the Sesiidae family, the Bembex clearwing resembles a hymenopteran (wasp) both in its appearance and flight. The wings are scaleless and transparent, narrow and elongated in shape.
Sesia bembeciformis is hardly distinguishable from its closest congener Sesia apiformis. However, apiformis has yellow 'epaulettes' on the "shoulders" directly above the wing bases; Sesia bembeciformis is dark coloured at this point except for the yellow neck ring. Sesia bembeciformis is also smaller and has a black head. In general, females are considerably larger than males. It resembles a big hornet (Vespa crabro) really well - an instance of mimicry.
The moths appear in June, July and August, they are then found resting on the trunks of willows. These include sal willow (Salix caprea), ash willow (Salix cinerea) and ear willow (Salix aurita). The eggs are laid on the bark. The larvae first gnaw between the bark and the wood, but later crawl further into the stem. Larva development takes 3 – 4 years. The species has a hidden way of life, and the imago lives only briefly, which makes it easily overlooked. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lunar Hornet Moth sighting in Manchester on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 248th most-seen of the 458 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June and July
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lunar Hornet Moth in Manchester on a given day, against under 5% in August to May, the lowest months.
Only Manchester, in our data
Manchester is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Lunar Hornet Moth sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lunar Hornet Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Manchester (12 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
