Photo 1. The book Leptiri Hrvatske (Butterflies of Croatia) states that the oak hawk moth (Marumba quercus) can be found rarely and only locally, and has been poorly studied. We photographed this specimen on a wall in one of the narrow streets in the immediate centre of Veli Lošinj (Photo by M. Randić).

MOTHS IN SMALL KVARNER TOWNS

In the early morning (or sometimes even during the day), if we take a walk down the narrow streets of island towns, such as ancient Osor, Lubenica or Beli on Cres Island, Vrbnik and Dobrinj on Krk Island, or Mali Lošinj, we can find many different insect species, including large moths, resting on walls, usually below street lights. The largest among them is the giant peacock moth (Saturnia pyri), with a wingspan of up to 130 mm. We can also find hawk moths – large crepuscular moths, such as the oak hawk moth (Photo 1). It would be useless to look for some of these insect species in larger towns, where nature is no longer hospitable to them and from where they disappeared a long time ago.

M. R.

References: Kranjčev, R. (2009): Leptiri Hrvatske (Butterflies of Croatia), Veda d.o.o., Križevci