# Bedstraw Hawkmoth

*Hyles gallii*

They can fly at speeds up to 12 miles per hour and are excellent long-distance migrators.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Arthropoda › Insecta › Lepidoptera › Sphingidae › Hyles
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Sunny meadows, forest glades, sand dunes, and gardens.
- **Diet:** Adults drink nectar from deep flowers like phlox and honeysuckle; caterpillars eat bedstraw and willowherb.
- **Range:** North America, Europe, Central Asia, Japan
- **Size:** Wingspan of 5.5 to 8 cm
- **Lifespan:** 10 to 30 days as an adult (up to 1 year including overwintering pupal stage)
- **Active:** crepuscular
- **Threats:** Pesticide run-off, habitat fragmentation, and artificial light pollution.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless. This moth has no stinger or fangs and cannot bite. You can safely observe them hovering at flowers from inches away. If one enters your home, gently trap it with a cup and cardboard to release it outside at night.

## About

Hyles gallii ( bedstraw hawk-moth , galium sphinx ) is a moth of the family Sphingidae.

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/04265cc7-8ded-48e3-be77-cbf6d4532662
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/118901
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyles gallii
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/170021664/medium.jpeg (Joey Bom, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.