Little Grey

Little Grey

Eudonia lacustrata

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Cairngorms National Park

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%

13 Verified sightings at Cairngorms National Park From 2019 to 2026
130 In all 8 parks
August Best month
🌙 Nocturnal When it's spotted

About the Little Grey

Eudonia lacustrata is a species of moth of the family Crambidae described by Georg Wolfgang Franz Panzer in 1804. It is found in Europe, north-west Africa, Asia from Turkey, Iran and Syria to Siberia and the western part of China (Hunan). The subspecies E. lacustrata persica is found in Iran and Armenia.

The wingspan is 16–18 mm (0.63–0.71 in). Forewings whitish, sometimes mixed with light ochreous-yellowish, sprinkled with black; base black-marked; lines whitish, blackish-edged, first irregular, second rather sinuate; orbicular and claviform dot-like, black; a black X-shaped discal mark; terminal area grey mixed with black, subterminal line white, interrupted in middle. Hindwings whitish-grey, darker terminally.

Larva yellowish-green; spots brownish-green; head and plate of 2 black-brown: on mosses; 3, 4. The moth flies from May to August depending on the location. The larvae feed on various mosses. Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
2 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
3 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
4 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
5 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
6 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
7 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
8 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Liverpool 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
2 Manchester 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
3 London 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
4 Birmingham 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
5 Helsinki 🇫🇮 Finland
~10%
6 Leeds 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
7 Budapest 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
8 Essen 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
9 Brussels 🇧🇪 Belgium
<5%
10 Munich 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Little Grey in Cairngorms National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Little Grey sighting in Cairngorms National Park on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 189th most-seen of the 300 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.

When is the best time to see a Little Grey in Cairngorms National Park?

July and August

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Little Grey in Cairngorms National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to June, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Little Grey?

Between 10 pm and 1 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Little Grey sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is mostly seen at night.

Is Cairngorms National Park the best place to see a Little Grey?

Among the best

Of the 8 parks where we can rate Little Grey sightings, Cairngorms National Park ranks 4th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Mercantour National Park (France, about 10%), Bavarian Forest National Park (Germany, about 10%) and Snowdonia National Park (United Kingdom, about 10%).

Where does the Little Grey sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Little Grey is recorded against all the insects logged in Cairngorms 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.

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