By Marlene Carmack
For the Carter County Times
Last year on a hot muggy afternoon I decided to sit on my front porch. I had built a small memorial garden to help me through my eldest daughter’s death. She passed away from the H1N1 influenza in 2010. The flowers were in bloom and the fragrances were so calming, as the wind came through the trees and over the creek.
As I sat there, I began to notice something that resembled a hummingbird hovering over a small bird, bees and butterfly bush. Taking my phone with me I was hoping to get a photo up close, but to my surprise I realized it wasn’t a hummingbird after all.
Its characteristics and flight pattern bore a remarkable resemblance to what you would notice on a hummingbird. The wings appeared to be clear as they fluttered. The colors were bright on its tail and lower body with yellow intermixing. The whole body appeared to be very soft to touch.
The amazing part of this little critter was that it showed no fear of me being beside it that close. I put my hand down close to it so I could try to get it to feel comfortable around me. It came closer but continued to feed. I was able to watch it and caught a few photos. It began to move around more and acted as though it was going to leave, but instead it softly brushed along my arm. It’s little body sat motionless in midair then raised upward towards my hair.
I just stood still to see what it would do. As it moved closer to my hair, it came to me that I had just washed my hair and the shampoo I used had a light scent of berries.
It’s flight path continued to go up the side of my face and then it flew up into the sky. It performed a beautiful elegant whirlwind motion as it was dancing. Circling, it began a small loop integrating into a medium loop then finishing off with a final loop larger than the rest. Then like a gust of wind it flew off over the neighbor’s roof.
It’s said that when they preform that way they are letting the others know that it’s a safe environment for feeding. The following day I was blessed to see another one. Its body was much smaller. From then on I had the privilege to see a number of different moths, butterflies and many birds who came to enjoy feeding.
The simplicity and the comforts of watching this critter has brought me a tremendous amount of pleasure, and I was so blessed to have this wonderful experience. There are many types of these moths so, take the time to watch for them. If you get to see one I hope your experience was as great as mine.
Contact the writer at news@cartercountytimes.com
