''Hemaris ducalis'', the Pamir bee hawkmoth, is a
moth of the family
Sphingidae. It is known from the mountains of south-western
Xinjiang in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, the western Tian Shan, southern and eastern
Kazakhstan up to the
Altai Mountains
The Altai Mountains (), also spelled Altay Mountains, are a mountain range in Central Asia, Central and East Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan converge, and where the rivers Irtysh and Ob River, Ob have their headwaters. The m ...
, western
Mongolia, southern
Uzbekistan,
Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan, northern
Afghanistan and
Pakistan.
The
wingspan is 40–50 mm. It can be distinguished from all other ''
Hemaris
''Hemaris'' is a genus of sphinx moths in the subfamily Macroglossinae, which is native to the Holarctic.Kitching, I. J. and J. Cadiou (2000). ''Hawkmoths of the World. An Annotated and Illustrated Revisionary Checklist (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae) ...
'' species by the off-white dorsal band on abdominal segment three. The degree of development of the transparent areas on both the forewing and hindwing is variable. The hindwing upperside is entirely orange, apart from the transparent areas, contrasting with the more brown coloration of the forewing upperside.
It is a
diurnal species. It is found in woodland and scrub, rarely below 2,300 meters and occurring up to 6,200 meters.
The larvae have been recorded feeding on ''
Lonicera'' species.
Subspecies
*''Hemaris ducalis'' subsp. ''ducalis''
*''Hemaris ducalis'' subsp. ''lukhtanovi''
Eitschberger, Danner & Surholt, 1998 (Pakistan)
References
D
Moths of Asia
Insects of China
Insects of Central Asia
Moths described in 1887
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