If you were only to see this moth itself, and not its caterpillar, you would be quite sure to wonder why it should ever have been called the “Elephant” Hawk. For it is not in the least like an elephant in any way at all. But the moment you look at the caterpillar you understand why this name was given to it; for the front part of its body is so long and slender that it really does remind one rather of an elephant’s trunk. And just behind it, on each side, is a big round spot which looks like an eye. If you want to find this curious caterpillar you should look for it in August on willow-herb and bedstraw plants which grow on the banks of ditches and streams. Now and then, too, you may find it feeding on fuchsias in gardens. It is sometimes green in colour, and sometimes dull grey or brown, and the horn at the end of its body is black, with a white tip. The moth, as you will see by its picture, is a very pretty one indeed, and you may see it hovering in front of flowers at dusk in May and June. PLATE XXIII THE SMALL ELEPHANT HAWK (3) This is a much smaller insect than the last, for its wings only measure about an inch and three-quarters from tip to tip when they are fully spread out. But it is one of the prettiest of all our British moths, with a rose-coloured body, and greenish-yellow wings marked with rose-coloured bands and spots. It is not at all uncommon, and if you want to see it you can very easily do so. All that you have to do is to stand at dusk on a warm evening in June in front of a honeysuckle bush, and then to remain perfectly still. After a few minutes you are almost sure to see a shadowy form hovering in front of one of the blossoms. This is a Small Elephant Hawk; and if you catch it, and wait for a little while, another one is almost sure to make its appearance in a very few minutes. The caterpillar of this moth is something like that of the “large elephant hawk,” but has three eye-like spots on each side of its body, and no horn upon its tail. It feeds upon bedstraw, and is generally found in places where the soil is chalky. [Illustration: PLATE XXIV 1. Humming-Bird Hawk 2. Bee Hawk 3. Currant Clearwing 4. Hornet Clearwing] PLATE XXIV THE HUMMING-BIRD HAWK (1) On a hot summer’s day you may often see this beautiful moth hovering in front of geraniums and other flowers in the garden, with its long trunk plunged deeply down into the blossoms in order to suck up their sweet juices. And if you stand a few feet away and listen carefully, you will hear a low humming noise, which is caused by the rapid movements of the wings. It looks and sounds, in fact, very much like a humming-bird, and people who have lived for many years in hot countries, and have then come to England, have often found it very difficult to believe that they were looking at a moth, and not at one of the beautiful little birds which they had known so well.