Gastrophysa viridula
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Gastrophysa viridula, known as the green dock beetle (note: the similar Gastrophysa cyanea in North America is also called the green dock beetle), green dock leaf beetle or green sorrel beetle, is a species of beetle native to Europe.
The length of the green dock beetle varies between sexes, with the males being 4 mm and the females being 7 mm. During the mating season, females have enlarged abdomens. Both sexes are green with a metallic shimmer, which, depending on the light, can be gold green, blue, purple, violet, or red. The legs of this species also shimmer a metallic green, and are strongly built. The antennae are serrated and are medium in length.
Its range extends eastward into western Siberia and the Caucasus Mountains. They are found in heathlands, forests, meadows, and gardens with the presence of plant dock (Rumex), the beetles' food plant. The green dock beetle feeds mainly on dock and green sorrel, rarely feeding... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Snowdonia National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 3 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Liverpool | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 3 | Rotterdam [The Hague] | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 4 | Amsterdam | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 5 | Hamburg | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 6 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 7 | London | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 8 | Warsaw | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 9 | Minsk | 🇧🇾 Belarus | |
| 10 | Leeds | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Green Dock Beetle sighting in London on a given day, based on 82 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 379th most-seen of the 1504 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.
April–June and September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Green Dock Beetle in London on a given day, against under 5% in July–August and October–March, the lowest months.
Between 4 and 7 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Green Dock Beetle sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 14 cities where we can rate Green Dock Beetle sightings, London ranks 7th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Manchester (United Kingdom, about 10%), Liverpool (United Kingdom, about 10%) and Rotterdam [The Hague] (Netherlands, about 10%).
Same family: Chrysomelidae
The closest relatives of the Green Dock Beetle that you can see in London (family Chrysomelidae, Leaf Beetles) are Rosemary Beetle (about 20%), Alder Leaf Beetle (about 10%) and Hawthorn Leaf Beetle (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Green Dock Beetle is recorded against all the insects logged in London (82 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.
