Euplagia quadripunctaria
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Euplagia quadripunctaria, the Jersey tiger, or Spanish flag, is a diurnal moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Nikolaus Poda von Neuhaus in 1761. The adult wingspan is 52–65 millimetres (2.0–2.6 in), and they fly from July to September, depending on the location. They tend to fly close to hemp-agrimony, Eupatorium cannabinum. In most of their range, the aposematic adults have red underwings. In the northwest part of their range, the adults are polymorphic for underwing colour, being variously red, orange, or yellow.
The larvae (caterpillars) are polyphagous, feeding from September to May on nettles (Urtica), raspberries (Rubus), dandelion (Taraxacum), white deadnettle (Lamium), ground-ivy (Glechoma), groundsel (Senecio), plantain (Plantago), borage (Borago), lettuce (Lactuca), and hemp-agrimony (Eupratoria). The insect overwinters as a small larva.
Large groups of adults of subspecies E. q. rhodosensis can be found on occasion aestivating (sheltering from the summer heat) in Petaloudes, on Rhodes, in a place that has become known as the Valley of the Butterflies. Euplagia quadripunctaria is widely distributed in Europe from Estonia and Latvia... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plitvice Lakes National Park | 🇭🇷 Croatia | |
| 2 | Picos de Europa National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 4 | Triglav National Park | 🇸🇮 Slovenia | |
| 5 | Ecrins National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 6 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 7 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 8 | Mercantour National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 9 | Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 10 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 11 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 12 | Vanoise National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 13 | Fertő-Hanság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Jersey Tiger sighting in Cologne on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 107th most-seen of the 235 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.
August
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Jersey Tiger in Cologne on a given day, against under 5% in June and September–April, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Jersey Tiger sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
9th of 12
Of the 12 cities where we can rate Jersey Tiger sightings, Cologne ranks 9th at about 10%. The best odds are in London (United Kingdom, about 40%), Lyon (France, about 20%) and Paris (France, about 10%).
Same family: Erebidae
The closest relatives of the Jersey Tiger that you can see in Cologne (family Erebidae, Underwing, Tiger, Tussock, and Allied Moths) are Cinnabar Moth (about 10%), Pale Tussock Moth (about 10%) and Ruby Tiger Moth (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Jersey Tiger is recorded against all the insects logged in Cologne (10 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.
