Elephant Hawk-moth LZ

Description
Large Elephant hawk-moths are one of the most brightly coloured moths found in the UK. They are often mistaken for pink butterflies. The "Elephant" part of the name comes from the caterpillars which have a trunk-like section just behind the head. It can be extended or retracted as a defensive tactic. When it feels threatened it draws this trunk in towards its body. This shields the head from danger and has the added advantage of inflating its body, making the four eye markings look much larger.

It is usually seen between May and July in woodland clearings. Their caterpillars are seen during the months of July to September. The caterpillars can be green but are more frequently brown with a net like pattern along the body, as well as the four large 'eye' markings at the head end. The two colour forms may be a defence tactic. If a predator is looking for green caterpillars it may not see the brown ones and vice-versa.

When fully grown the caterpillar moves down to the ground to pupate. It remains in this state until the following spring (around May) when it emerges as an adult moth.The lifespan of the adult moth is up to five weeks.



Temperature regulation
For animals such as insects, there needs to be movement to maintain a comfortable internal temperature. During flight, a lot of energy is required but an insects flight muscles are capable of exceeding the energy needed by producing heat. As long as the upper limit isnt exceeded, the insect will tolerate the increase in core temperature. However, if the flying insect is also exposed to external sources of heat (for example, radiation from the sun) or ambient temperatures are too high, it should be able to thermoregulate and stay in its temperature comfort zone.

Several large insects have evolved to warm-up previous to flight so that energetically demanding activities, such as flight, are possible. Insect behavior involves inefficient muscle operation which produces excess heat and establishes the thermal range in which specific muscles best function. The high metabolic cost of insect flight muscles means that great amounts of chemical energy are utilized by these specific muscles. However, only a very small percentage of this energy translates into actual mechanical work or wing movement. Thus, the rest of this chemical energy is transformed into heat that in turn produces body temperatures significantly greater than those of the ambient