Hyles lineata
In 3 days >90%
Hyles lineata, also known as the white-lined sphinx moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. They are sometimes known as a "hummingbird moth" because of their bird-like size (2–3 inch wingspan) and flight patterns. As caterpillars, they have a wide range of color phenotypes but show consistent adult coloration. With a wide geographic range throughout Central and North America, H. lineata is known to feed on many different host plants as caterpillars and pollinate a variety of flowers as adults.
Larvae are powerful eaters and are known to form massive groupings capable of damaging crops and gardens. As adults, they use both visual and olfactory perception to locate plants from which they collect nectar. Hyles lineata is one of the most abundant hawk moths in North America and has a very wide geographic range. This range extends from Central America to southern Canada through Mexico and most of the United States. Some regions of South Asia like Sindh, Pakistan are reported to have habitats for these moths. They can also be found occasionally in the West Indies. Rarely, specimens have also been reported in Eurasia and Africa.
The abundance of Hyles lineata populations... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Tijuana | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 3 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Salt Lake City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Denver | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Ciudad Juárez | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 9 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States |
Very likely
About 80% of wildlife watchers report a White-Lined Sphinx sighting in Death Valley National Park on a given day, based on 540 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the most-seen of the 108 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March
In that month about 90% of wildlife watchers report a White-Lined Sphinx in Death Valley National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June and November–January, the lowest months. That is one of Death Valley National Park's wettest months, with about 30 mm of rain against 5 mm in June.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-Lined Sphinx sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 23 parks where we can rate White-Lined Sphinx sightings, Death Valley National Park has the highest daily chance: about 80%. Next come Joshua Tree National Park (United States, about 40%) and Bahía de Loreto National Park (Mexico, about 30%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Lepidoptera
The closest relatives of the White-Lined Sphinx that you can see in Death Valley National Park (order Lepidoptera, Butterflies and Moths) are Painted Lady (about 40%), Western Pygmy-Blue (about 40%) and Sagebrush Checkerspot (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-Lined Sphinx is recorded against all the insects logged in Death Valley National Park (540 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
