Acronicta americana
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
Acronicta americana, the American dagger moth, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It was originally described by Thaddeus William Harris in 1841 and is native to North America. The American dagger moth has a wingspan of 50 to 65 mm (2.0 to 2.6 in) It usually has a sharp, double postmedian line, with white in between the two lines. There is a black dash on the anal area of the forewing. The hindwing is gray with a faint, darker gray median line in the male.
The female is similar, except the hindwing is completely dark. Acronicta americana americana Acronicta americana obscura Acronicta americana eldora The American dagger moth is found in North America east of the Rocky Mountains.
The American dagger moth can be seen from April to September throughout its range. Caterpillars can be seen from July to October. It has one brood in the north and two to three broods in the south. The American dagger moth is found in deciduous woodlands and forests.
The young caterpillar is densely covered with yellow setae. The older caterpillar's setae are either pale yellow or white. All instars have... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Cape Breton Highlands National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detroit | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Montreal | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Denver | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an American Dagger sighting in Austin on a given day, based on 86 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 350th most-seen of the 1624 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April–May and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an American Dagger in Austin on a given day, against under 5% in June–October and December–March, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most American Dagger sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
11th of 16
Of the 16 cities where we can rate American Dagger sightings, Austin ranks 11th at about 10%. The best odds are in Detroit (United States, about 20%), Montreal (Canada, about 10%) and Chicago (United States, about 10%).
Same genus: Acronicta
The closest relatives of the American Dagger that you can see in Austin (genus Acronicta, Dagger Moths) are Hackberry Dagger (about 10%), Acronicta tota (about 10%) and Delightful Dagger (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the American Dagger is recorded against all the insects logged in Austin (86 verified sightings), 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.
