Catocala relicta
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Catocala relicta, the white underwing or relict, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Francis Walker in 1858. It lives in southern Canada, from Newfoundland to Vancouver Island, south to Missouri, and Arizona.
The wingspan is 67–75 mm. Adults are on wing from July to September in one generation depending on the location. The larvae feed on Betula papyrifera, Carya ovata, Populus alba, Populus balsamifera, Populus deltoides, Populus nigra, Populus tremuloides, Quercus species, and Salix species (including Salix eriocephala). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elk Island National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edmonton | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Montreal | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Portland | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Seattle | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 8 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Vancouver | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 10 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White Underwing sighting in Seattle on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 246th most-seen of the 428 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.
September
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a White Underwing in Seattle on a given day, against under 5% in October to August, the lowest months. That is one of Seattle's driest months, with about 60 mm of rain against 190 mm in November.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White Underwing sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
6th of 10
Of the 10 cities where we can rate White Underwing sightings, Seattle ranks 6th at under 5%. The best odds are in Edmonton (Canada, about 10%), Montreal (Canada, under 5%) and Boston (United States, under 5%).
Same family: Erebidae
The closest relatives of the White Underwing that you can see in Seattle (family Erebidae, Underwing, Tiger, Tussock, and Allied Moths) are Isabella Tiger Moth (about 10%), Silver-Spotted Tiger Moth (about 10%) and Cinnabar Moth (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White Underwing is recorded against all the insects logged in Seattle (13 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.
