Prays fraxinella
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Prays fraxinella, also known as the ash bud moth, is a moth of the family Plutellidae found in Europe. The larvae are leaf miners, feeding on the leaves and buds of ash trees. The wingspan is 14–18 mm. The head is white or greyish ochreous. Forewings are white or greyish-ochreous; some blackish dorsal strigulae; a triangular blackish blotch, lighter or mixed with whitish on costa, extending along costa from near base to 2/3; some irregular blackish marks towards termen; sometimes the whole wing is unicolorous dark fuscous. Hind wings are rather dark grey. The larva is greenish, marbled with red -brown above; dorsal line deep green; head pale brown, dark-spotted; 2 with two black spots.
Adults are on wing from May to June and again in August in two generations depending on the location. Prays fraxinella has two colour forms, the typical white and black colouration and the melanic form f.rustica. Recently, the form f.rustica, that has an orange head has been separated into an entirely new species, Prays ruficeps.
Ovum Eggs are laid on the twigs of ash (Fraxinus excelsior) and manna ash (Fraxinus ornus) in June and July. Larva When fully fed the larvae are 12 mm long... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 3 | Moscow | 🇷🇺 Russia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Ash Bud Moth sighting in London on a given day, based on 32 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 616th most-seen of the 1504 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.
May to July
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Ash Bud Moth in London on a given day, against under 5% in August to April, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Ash Bud Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
Yes
Of the 3 cities where we can rate Ash Bud Moth sightings, London has the highest daily chance: under 5%. Next come Birmingham (United Kingdom, under 5%) and Moscow (Russia, under 5%).
Same order: Lepidoptera
The closest relatives of the Ash Bud Moth that you can see in London (order Lepidoptera, Butterflies and Moths) are Jersey Tiger (about 40%), Speckled Wood (about 40%) and Red Admiral (about 40%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Ash Bud Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in London (32 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.
