Spodoptera ornithogalli
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
Spodoptera ornithogalli (yellow-striped armyworm, cotton cutworm) is a moth of the family Noctuidae. When first discovered this particular species was thought to be the American representative of S. littoralis as the two species have very similar forms. However, S. ornithogalli is known to have much darker color body with sharper markings.
The wingspan of the adult moth is 32–44 millimetres (1+1⁄4–1+3⁄4 in). The fore-wing is brown with tan markings and a blurry white stripe coming from the wing tip. The hind-wing is white with a thin brown margin. Larvae are black with thin yellow stripes on their sides.
Adults are on wing from April to November depending on the location. Canada: Ontario, Quebec Mexico United States: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Point Pelee National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Detroit | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-Striped Armyworm Moth sighting in Chicago on a given day, based on 157 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 128th most-seen of the 978 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.
August to October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-Striped Armyworm Moth in Chicago on a given day, against under 5% in November to July, the lowest months.
Between 9 pm and midnight
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Yellow-Striped Armyworm Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is mostly seen at night.
Among the best
Of the 15 cities where we can rate Yellow-Striped Armyworm Moth sightings, Chicago ranks 7th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Austin (United States, about 10%), Dallas (United States, about 10%) and Baltimore (United States, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Yellow-Striped Armyworm Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Chicago (157 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.
