In mid-summer, an unusual insect hangs over flowerbeds with flowers, which collects pollen with a long proboscis. At first glance, it can be compared to a hummingbird, so quickly it flaps its wings. In fact, this insect from the family of hawks is considered a butterfly.
Strange "birds"
In summer, you can see strange guests, quickly fluttering from one flower to another. They hover over marigolds and majors, for some reason remain indifferent to rose bushes, drop tiny proboscis into the flowers and fly away swiftly.
The first thought of most people is: “Where does hummingbird come from in our area?” We are not in America, which means that the mysterious guests have nothing in common with the famous bird. Then who are these little fast-scurrying creatures? Let me introduce - this is an ordinary lazy. The photo of the insect below will provide an opportunity to carefully examine and evaluate the similarity to a hummingbird. The butterfly, with the help of wings, hangs over the flower for several seconds and drinks its nectar, almost in the same way as a bird does.
The main characteristics of the insect
The proboscis hawthorn, or common lagoon, is distinguished by its gray front wings, on which a transverse pattern is drawn, while the rear borders are decorated with a dark border on an orange background. In the wingspan, the wings of a butterfly flare up to 50 mm, and their flapping is so swift that it is almost impossible to consider them.
The insect is medium in size. His abdomen is decorated with a brush with hairs, and it looks a bit like a bird's tail. That is why for many people the marshmallow (common Yazyk) is associated with hummingbirds. The caterpillars of the butterfly are green to dark brown; however, before turning into a mature individual, the pupa turns red.
The insect produces offspring twice during the summer. Caterpillars of the first generation, preferring the flooded places of the forest edges, appear in thickets of bedstraw and starfish. As a rule, this occurs during the early autumn (September, early October). The second generation appears in the summer (June, August).
The common lingo is a thermophilic insect. He appears with the beginning of summer. Insects fly from the south, but the representatives of the second generation with autumn cold fly away to regions with warm climatic conditions.
Territories of distribution
On the territory of Crimea, an ordinary yazan is capable of giving three generations during the year. The insect is so adapted in a warm climate that it is found almost everywhere. Insects are widely distributed in Europe, in North Africa. This species of hawthorn produces offspring in Asia and South India. In the territories of the countries of the former CIS, the common linguist settles in the southern and central regions up to the Far East. On the fertile, flowering lands of the Kuban, the insect is able to breed three times a season. In winter, the shredder retains its appearance, being in the state of both a butterfly and a pupa. At the first warm, even winter, rays of the sun, it seeks to fly.
Number of insects
The number of representatives of the hawk family varies greatly from year to year. This is due to several reasons:
- a sharp change in weather conditions that are not characteristic of the habitats and breeding species;
- pollution of habitats with chemical products;
- sudden changes in temperature;
- unpleasant weather conditions during the migration period.
In favorable periods, the numerical composition of the butterfly population can be quite large, and in difficult years the number of insects decreases.
