Phymatopus hecta
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The gold swift (Phymatopus hecta) is a moth belonging to the family Hepialidae. Until recently it was placed in the genus Hepialus. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. Moths of the Hepialidae are considered to be primitive moths; they do not have a proboscis and are unable to feed. The gold swift is a widespread species found in Europe and Asia, including Japan.
This is a rather small moth for the family, with a wingspan of 26–32 mm. The male is distinctive, the brown forewings marked with two parallel bands of white markings. The larger female is less striking with muted grey-and-brown markings. The adult is on the wing in June and July (this refers to the British Isles; other parts of the range may differ) and both sexes are moderately attracted to light. To attract females, the male emits a scent rather similar to pineapple.
The adult moths spend most of the 24 hours resting, in a wide variety of places from the tree canopy to the base of the ground vegetation. They are active only for two brief periods: for an hour or two around sunset, when they mate and previously mated females lay eggs; and then very... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cairngorms National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Gold Swift sighting in Bavarian Forest National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 822nd most-seen of the 1115 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June and July
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Gold Swift in Bavarian Forest National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to May, the lowest months.
Between 6 and 9 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Gold Swift sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Gold Swift sightings, Bavarian Forest National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in Cairngorms National Park (United Kingdom, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Gold Swift is recorded against all the insects logged in Bavarian Forest National Park (6 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
