Pearly Green Lacewing

Pearly Green Lacewing

Chrysopa perla

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Saint Petersburg

In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%

12 Verified sightings at Saint Petersburg
19 In all 3 parks From 2019 to 2026
July Best month
☀️🌙 Day & Night When it's spotted

About the Pearly Green Lacewing

Chrysopa perla, the Pearly Green Lacewing, is an insect species belonging to the green lacewing family, Chrysopidae (subfamily Chrysopinae). This widespread species is present in most of Europe and in temperate zones of Asia.

These insects prefer cool and shady areas, mainly in deciduous woods, wet forests, woodland edges, hedge rows, scrubby grassland and shrubs. The adults reach 10–12 millimetres (0.39–0.47 in) of length, with a wingspan of 25–30 millimetres (0.98–1.18 in). The basic coloration of the body is green. Wings are blue-green with black veins. They turn pale yellow during the winter. Several black markings are present on the head, the thorax and below the abdomen. The second antennal segment is black. This species is rather similar to Chrysopa dorsalis, showing an oval pale spot between the eyes, which is roundish in C. perla.

Adults can be encountered from May through August. They are fearsome predators, primarily feeding on aphids, occasionally on flower nectar. The females usually lay eggs near aphid colonies. Larvae are predators, mainly feeding on Aphididae, Coccidae species and caterpillars (Pieris... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
2 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
3 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Manchester 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
2 Nizhny Novgorod 🇷🇺 Russia
~10%
3 Helsinki 🇫🇮 Finland
<5%
4 Birmingham 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
<5%
5 Bucharest 🇷🇴 Romania
<5%
6 Kazan 🇷🇺 Russia
<5%
7 Moscow 🇷🇺 Russia
<5%
8 Kyiv 🇺🇦 Ukraine
<5%
9 Saint Petersburg 🇷🇺 Russia
<5%
10 London 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Pearly Green Lacewing in Saint Petersburg?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Pearly Green Lacewing sighting in Saint Petersburg on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 193rd most-seen of the 448 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Pearly Green Lacewing in Saint Petersburg?

June and July

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Pearly Green Lacewing in Saint Petersburg on a given day, against under 5% in August to May, the lowest months. Those are among Saint Petersburg's wettest months, with about 95 mm of rain a month against 40 mm in February.

What time of day is best to see a Pearly Green Lacewing?

Between 11 am and 2 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pearly Green Lacewing 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.

Is Saint Petersburg the best place to see a Pearly Green Lacewing?

9th of 10

Of the 10 cities where we can rate Pearly Green Lacewing sightings, Saint Petersburg ranks 9th at under 5%. The best odds are in Manchester (United Kingdom, about 10%), Nizhny Novgorod (Russia, about 10%) and Helsinki (Finland, under 5%).

Where does the Pearly Green Lacewing sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Pearly Green Lacewing is recorded against all the insects logged in Saint Petersburg (12 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.

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