Limenitis populi
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The poplar admiral (Limenitis populi) is a butterfly in the Limenitidine clade of the family Nymphalidae. Poplar Admiral habitat is widespread in continental Europe and many areas in Asia. The large, seldom-seen Poplar Admiral is one of the biggest butterflies in Europe. It is found in deciduous forests, where aspen (Populus tremula) or black poplar (Populus nigra) trees grow. This is because the caterpillar only eats the leaves of these species of tree. In altitude, for instance in the Alps, where there are not large Populus forests, they accommodate with a grove, in the southeast of France they can be seen flying in large open spaces, for instance in the department of Alpes-Maritimes, as noted by Jacques Rigout. The males are easier to find. The females are rarer, because they tend to stay in the tops of the trees and seldom venture to the ground (see above).
The wingspan in spread specimens varies for the males from 66 to 77 mm, and for the females from 82 to 85 mm, all measures done on the larger private collection of Limenitis populi, now in the hands of Jean-Claude Weiss, the well-known specialist of Parnassius.
In fact the specimens in the... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ecrins National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moscow | 🇷🇺 Russia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Poplar Admiral sighting in Bavarian Forest National Park on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 523rd most-seen of the 1115 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
October
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Poplar Admiral in Bavarian Forest National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August–September and November–May, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Poplar Admiral sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Poplar Admiral sightings, Bavarian Forest National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Ecrins National Park (France, about 10%).
Same family: Nymphalidae
The closest relatives of the Poplar Admiral that you can see in Bavarian Forest National Park (family Nymphalidae, Brush-footed Butterflies) are European Peacock Butterfly (about 40%), Meadow Brown (about 30%) and Red Admiral (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Poplar Admiral is recorded against all the insects logged in Bavarian Forest National Park (13 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.
