California Tiger Moth

California Tiger Moth

Leptarctia californiae

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at San Francisco

In 3 days ~10%

6 Verified sightings at San Francisco
8 In 1 park From 2019 to 2026
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the California Tiger Moth

Leptarctia is a monotypic tiger moth genus in the family Erebidae described by Stretch in 1872. Its only species, Leptarctia californiae, was described by Francis Walker in 1855. It is found in western North America, from New Mexico and Colorado to California and north to British Columbia. The habitat consists of open forests, meadows and clearings in the mountains.

The length of the forewings is 12–17 mm. Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Olympic National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

More parks will be added in future updates.

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 San Francisco 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a California Tiger Moth in San Francisco?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a California Tiger Moth sighting in San Francisco on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 622nd most-seen of the 737 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a California Tiger Moth in San Francisco?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a California Tiger Moth in San Francisco on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a California Tiger Moth?

Between 10 am and 1 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most California Tiger Moth sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Where else can you see a California Tiger Moth?

Only San Francisco, in our data

San Francisco is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate California Tiger Moth sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.

Which relatives of the California Tiger Moth live in San Francisco?

Same family: Erebidae

The closest relatives of the California Tiger Moth that you can see in San Francisco (family Erebidae, Underwing, Tiger, Tussock, and Allied Moths) are Spotted Tussock Moth (about 10%) and Western Tussock Moth (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the California Tiger Moth sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the California Tiger Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in San Francisco (6 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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