Neoalcis californiaria
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Neoalcis californiaria, the Brown-lined looper, is a common North American moth, with a range along the west coast from British Columbia to California. Its larva is a looper (inchworm) caterpillar that feeds on Douglas Fir and other conifers trees. It is identified by the position of three dark lines on each wing and scalloped edges of the hindwing.
Neoalcis is a monotypic genus of moths in the family Geometridae erected by James Halliday McDunnough in 1920. It is the only species in the genus, and was first described by Packard in 1871. The wingspan is about 34 mm.
The Brown-lined Looper's ground color ranges from ashy gray, to light brown to dark brown, with numerous brown speckles and variable patches of darker shading between crosslines. Wing edges are scalloped. It has three dark transverse lines on both forewing and hindwing, however the middle line may be obscure. When in a resting posture, with wings spread, the darkest crossline (the PM line) of the hindwing is set lower and dose not line up with the darkest line of the forewing.
On the forewing, the basal line is curved convexly and ends on the costa at the basal third. The middle line is broader towards... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Olympic National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portland | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Seattle | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Vancouver | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Brown-Lined Looper sighting in Vancouver on a given day, based on 19 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 219th most-seen of the 482 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.
August and September
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Brown-Lined Looper in Vancouver on a given day, against under 5% in October to July, the lowest months. Those are among Vancouver's driest months, with about 50 mm of rain a month against 210 mm in November.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Brown-Lined Looper 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.
3rd of 5
Of the 5 cities where we can rate Brown-Lined Looper sightings, Vancouver ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Portland (United States, about 10%) and Seattle (United States, about 10%).
Same family: Geometridae
The closest relatives of the Brown-Lined Looper that you can see in Vancouver (family Geometridae, Geometer Moths) are Hemlock Looper Moth (about 10%) and Phantom Hemlock Looper (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Brown-Lined Looper is recorded against all the insects logged in Vancouver (19 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.
