Eyed Hawk-Moth

The eyed hawk-moth is a member of the family Sphingidae widespread across Europe, named for the striking eyespots concealed on its hindwings. At rest with wings closed, it appears as an unremarkable pinkish-brown moth, but when disturbed it can flick its forewings apart to expose two large blue-centered eyespots ringed in black, a classic example of a startle or deimatic display in moths.

The species is closely related to the poplar hawk-moth, sharing similar overall coloring and habitat preferences, but is readily distinguished by its dramatic hindwing pattern.

Its larvae feed primarily on willow and apple, linking the species to both wild riparian habitat and cultivated orchards.

• Medium-large hawk-moth with mottled pinkish-brown to grey-brown forewings and a scalloped wing margin.
• Hindwings, normally hidden, bear large blue eyespots set within a black ring on a pink background, revealed only when the moth is disturbed.
• Body is stout, tapered, and colored to match the forewings, aiding camouflage at rest.
• Lookalikes: poplar hawk-moth, which shares similar forewing coloring but lacks the blue eyespots and shows only a plain rust patch on the hindwing instead.

Distributed across most of Europe into temperate Asia, the eyed hawk-moth is found in gardens, orchards, hedgerows, riverbanks, and woodland edges wherever willow, apple, or related trees grow. Adults fly primarily from late spring into midsummer, are nocturnal, and are occasionally drawn to lights, while larvae feed on host foliage through the summer months.

Adults are nocturnal fliers that do not feed, surviving on reserves accumulated during the larval stage. Their primary defensive behavior is the sudden exposure of the hindwing eyespots when threatened, a rapid visual display intended to startle predators such as birds long enough for the moth to escape. Larvae are leaf-feeding herbivores of willow and apple, growing to a large size before pupation, and serve as a food source for birds and other predators within woodland and orchard ecosystems.

Eggs are laid on the leaves of willow, apple, or related trees, hatching into large green caterpillars with pale diagonal side stripes and a blue-tipped tail horn typical of sphinx moths. After feeding through summer, mature larvae pupate in the soil, overwintering underground before adults emerge the following late spring. Typically one generation occurs per year across most of the species' European range.