Amphipyra pyramidoides
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Amphipyra pyramidoides, the copper underwing, is a species of moth in the family Noctuidae. It is found in the US and southern Canada. The wingspan is 38–52 mm. Adults are on wing from July through October depending on the location. There is one generation per year. They overwinter as eggs. The caterpillars are green with a white middorsal spiracular line, yellow spotting, and a hump at their eighth abdominal segment. Adult copper underwings have dappled brown forewings, and white hindwings with a black cross line and coppery orange suffusion.
The larvae feed on the leaves of many broadleaf trees and shrubs, including apple, basswood, hawthorn, maple, oak, walnut, raspberry, grape, greenbrier (Smilax). The larvae are active in the spring; when ready to pupate they build a shelter by rolling a leaf. Aggregations of newly eclosed adults are found under bark, etc., in mid-summer. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Point Pelee National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edmonton | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Detroit | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 10 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an American Copper Underwing sighting in Philadelphia on a given day, based on 35 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 167th most-seen of the 632 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 and July–August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an American Copper Underwing in Philadelphia on a given day, against under 5% in June and September–April, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most American Copper Underwing 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.
Among the best
Of the 17 cities where we can rate American Copper Underwing sightings, Philadelphia ranks 6th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Edmonton (Canada, about 10%), Baltimore (United States, about 10%) and Boston (United States, about 10%).
Same family: Noctuidae
The closest relatives of the American Copper Underwing that you can see in Philadelphia (family Noctuidae, Cutworm Moths and Allies) are American Dagger (about 10%), Large Yellow Underwing (about 10%) and Yellow-Striped Armyworm Moth (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the American Copper Underwing is recorded against all the insects logged in Philadelphia (35 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.
