Lily Borer

Lily Borer

Brithys crini

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Harare

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%

5 Verified sightings at Harare
95 In all 2 parks From 2019 to 2026
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Lily Borer

Brithys crini, the amaryllis borer, crinum borer, lily borer or Kew arches, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is a garden pest in parts of its range, as their larvae damage the stems and leaves of lilies, especially lilies of the family Amaryllidaceae.

It is found in the coastal areas of Southern Europe and North Africa, south to South Africa. Furthermore, it is found in Japan and in Queensland and Northern Territory in Australia towards India and Sri Lanka. The wingspan of the moth is about 40 mm. Its head, thorax and forewings are very dark brown, but paler toward the wingtips. Sub-basal, median and postmedial indistinct waved lines are black. A curved submarginal ochreous line with ferrous colored lunules found on each side of it. There is a marginal black lunule series. The hindwings are practically white. Tarsi bear black and white stripes. In Europe the adults are on the wing in July.

There are several generations per year, though development slows down in cooler seasons, when the larvae sometimes overwinter by boring into the bulbs of the host plants. The moth lays clusters of a few dozen eggs on the host plant leaves. The... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
2 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Pretoria 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
2 Johannesburg 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
3 Cape Town 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
4 Durban 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
5 Harare 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~10%
6 Porto 🇵🇹 Portugal
<5%
7 Chennai 🇮🇳 India
<5%
8 Brisbane 🇦🇺 Australia
<5%
9 Tokyo 🇯🇵 Japan
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Lily Borer in Harare?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lily Borer sighting in Harare on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 76th most-seen of the 93 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Lily Borer in Harare?

January and April

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Lily Borer in Harare on a given day, against under 5% in February and May–December, the lowest months. Those are among Harare's wettest months, with about 110 mm of rain a month against almost none in August.

What time of day is best to see a Lily Borer?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lily Borer sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Harare the best place to see a Lily Borer?

Among the best

Of the 9 cities where we can rate Lily Borer sightings, Harare ranks 5th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Pretoria (South Africa, about 10%), Johannesburg (South Africa, about 10%) and Cape Town (South Africa, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Lily Borer live in Harare?

Same family: Noctuidae

The closest relatives of the Lily Borer that you can see in Harare (family Noctuidae, Cutworm Moths and Allies) are White Quaker (about 10%), The African (about 10%) and Dark Mottled Willow (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Lily Borer sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Lily Borer is recorded against all the insects logged in Harare (5 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.

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