CRITICAL POLINATOR. This white-lined sphinx moth (Hyles lineata) along with birds, bats, butterflies, moths, flies, beetles, wasps, small mammals, and bees, are a vital part of every ecosystem and are responsible for pollinating at least 180,000 different plant species and more than 1200 crops. Many pollinator populations are in decline, mostly caused by a loss of feeding and nesting habitats, pollution, the misuse of chemicals, disease, and changes in climatic patterns.