A curious sound drew Thomas to this hummingbird hawkmoth. He watched as it hovered in front of each salvia flower and drank the nectar using its long, straw-like proboscis. Framing the fast-moving insect was challenging, but Thomas was pleased with how he captured the stillness of the moth’s body and the blur of its wings.

Hummingbird hawkmoths are unusual in that they fly by day, so their eyesight is better than most other moths’. In flight they look so similar to hummingbirds that they can be easily confused. This similarity inspired their name, as did the hum created by their wings beating around 85 times each second.