Monalocoris filicis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Monalocoris filicis, commonly known as the bracken bug, is a true bug in the family Miridae. The species is found in Europe from Ireland in the West and including the northern edge of the Mediterranean and the East across the Palearctic to Central Asia, Korea and Japan. In Central Europe, it is widespread and generally common. In the Alps, it occurs up to the edge of the forest. Habitats are deciduous and coniferous forests and moist, open habitats such as bogs or the shores of streams.
Adults are 2.0-3.1 mm long and are a golden brown color, and have a pale-orange head and are therefore easily identifiable. They are similar to Bryocoris pteridis from which they can be distinguished by the first segment of the antenna, which is shorter than the head is wide. The adult animals are always fully winged (macropterous).
Monalocoris filicis feeds on Dryopteris filix-mas and Pteridium aquilinum occasionally alongside Monalocoris parvulus. They suck especially immature spore plants in late summer. The males are strong fliers and swarm during the mating season, when they are found also on other plants. The females lay green eggs from May until early June on the host plants, where they are indistinguishable from the similarly colored spores. Nymphs are found primarily in June and July, adult bugs from the end of June to the mating season. In the September/early October, the imagines leave the host plants to overwinter, hibernating as an imago in the dry remains of their host plants on the ground, in the leaf litter or branches of conifers (usually Picea abies). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
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More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Bracken Bug sighting in Helsinki on a given day, based on 11 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 480th most-seen of the 838 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Bracken Bug in Helsinki on a given day, against under 5% in August to June, the lowest months.
Yes
Of the 2 cities where we can rate Bracken Bug sightings, Helsinki has the highest daily chance: under 5%. Next come Tokyo (Japan, under 5%).
Same family: Miridae
The closest relatives of the Bracken Bug that you can see in Helsinki (family Miridae, Plant Bugs) are Calocoris affinis (about 20%), Closterotomus biclavatus (about 10%) and Common Nettle Flower Bug (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Bracken Bug is recorded against all the insects logged in Helsinki (11 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.
