Bug card No. 2037 of 4,939

Greater death's head hawkmoth

Acherontia lachesis

Eats: Nectar and pollen MothsGardens and meadows6 legs

The greater death's head hawkmoth is a big moth with yellow and black bands on its body. It has a sweet tooth for honey. It sneaks into beehives at night and drinks the honey right out of the comb.

Lives in

India, Sri Lanka and much of East and Southeast Asia, and now Hawaii

Wingspan

13 cm (5.1 in)

the biggest ones

Top speed

about 57 km/h (35 mph)

Flying, estimate

Can it hurt you?

Harmless

Harmless to people. It may squeak when you disturb it, but it cannot hurt you.

What does it eat?

Grown-ups love honey and steal it from beehives. The caterpillars eat leaves of many plants, like potatoes, aubergines, jasmine and teak.

Photo of Greater death's head hawkmoth — Picture by Mosmas. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How big is it?

How wide are its wings?

wings as wide as your handcould fly across a whole football pitch in 6.6 seconds

How big is Greater death's head hawkmoth compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

How fast is it?

A kid running fast about 13 km/h (8.1 mph)

A grown-up on a bike about 25 km/h (16 mph)

A car driving in town about 50 km/h (31 mph)

Greater death's head hawkmoth about 57 km/h (35 mph)

cool stuff

Fun facts

It can smell like a honey bee, so the bees let it into the hive without stinging it.

Its short, strong tongue can poke through the wax to suck out honey.

When disturbed, the moth lifts its wings and makes a squeaking sound.

Its caterpillar can grow to 12.5 centimetres long and clicks its jaws when bothered.

The caterpillar digs about 15 centimetres into the ground to become a pupa.

you asked

Most asked questions about Greater death's head hawkmoth

?Is the death's head hawkmoth dangerous?

No. It looks spooky, but it is harmless to people.

?Why does it go into beehives?

To drink honey. It smells like a bee, so the bees do not attack it.

?How big is the greater death's head hawkmoth?

Its wings can be up to 13 centimetres across.

For bug experts

Scientific name: Acherontia lachesis
Named by: Fabricius, 1798
Group: Moths
Family: Sphingidae
Classification: Insecta > Lepidoptera > Sphingidae
Lives on: Asia, Australia and Oceania
Also known as: Bee robber

Where the facts come from

Acherontia lachesis (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
Picture by Mosmas. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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