Paysandisia archon
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Paysandisia archon is a moth of the family Castniidae. It is native to Uruguay and central Argentina and has been accidentally introduced to Europe, where it is spreading rapidly. It is considered the only member of the genus Paysandisia.
German naturalist Hermann Burmeister described the species in 1879 as Castnia archon. This is a very large moth with a wingspan of 90–110 mm. The forewings are dark green with brown streaking, the hindwings are bright red with bold black and white markings. The females, generally larger than the males, are easily recognized by the prominent ovipositor. Like other castniids, this species flies by day and has clubbed antennae and is easily mistaken for a butterfly. The adults fly from June to September.
The larva is whitish and maggot-like and feeds in the stems and trunks of palms (see list below for recorded food plants). In its natural range, the damage done by the larvae is unobtrusive and the species is not considered a pest but the species is causing increasing concern in Europe because of the sometimes fatal damage being caused to native and exotic palms. The species pupates in a cocoon incorporating palm fibres within the larval gallery.
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| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Palm Moth sighting in Madrid on a given day, based on 29 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 134th most-seen of the 457 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.
July
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Palm Moth in Madrid on a given day, against under 5% in October to May, the lowest months. That is one of Madrid's driest months, with about 10 mm of rain against 65 mm in October.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Palm Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 6
Of the 6 cities where we can rate Palm Moth sightings, Madrid ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Rome (Italy, about 20%), Barcelona (Spain, about 10%) and Buenos Aires (Argentina, about 10%).
Same order: Lepidoptera
The closest relatives of the Palm Moth that you can see in Madrid (order Lepidoptera, Butterflies and Moths) are Rush Veneer (about 20%), Iberian Scarce Swallowtail (about 20%) and Speckled Wood (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Palm Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Madrid (29 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.
