Acronicta insularis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Acronicta insularis, the cattail caterpillar (when referring to the larva) or Henry's marsh moth (when referring to the adult), is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Gottlieb August Wilhelm Herrich-Schäffer in 1868. It is found from coast to coast throughout the United States and southern Canada (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba).
The wingspan is 35–40 mm. Adults are on wing from April to September. The larvae feed on Typha and Polygonum species, as well as various grasses and sedges, poplar and willow. Acronicta insularis was formerly called Simyra insularis. In 2015, the genus Simyra, along with Oxicesta and Eogena, were moved to Acronicta based on phylogenetic analysis.
The MONA or Hodges number for Acronicta insularis is 9280. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Denver | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 7 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Marsh Dagger sighting in Washington on a given day, based on 14 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 990th most-seen of the 1807 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.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Marsh Dagger in Washington on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Marsh Dagger sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 11 cities where we can rate Marsh Dagger sightings, Washington ranks 7th at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Minneapolis [Saint Paul] (United States, under 5%), Dallas (United States, under 5%) and Chicago (United States, under 5%).
Same genus: Acronicta
The closest relatives of the Marsh Dagger that you can see in Washington (genus Acronicta, Dagger Moths) are American Dagger (about 10%) and Smeared Dagger (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Marsh Dagger is recorded against all the insects logged in Washington (14 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.
