Hypercompe scribonia
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The giant leopard moth (Hypercompe scribonia) is a moth of the family Erebidae. They are distributed through North America from southern Ontario, and southern and eastern United States through New England, Mexico, and south to Colombia. The obsolete name, Ecpantheria scribonia, is still occasionally encountered.
They are known to be attracted to bitter, unripe vegetables and broccoli flowers. This moth species has a wingspan of 76 mm (3 in). Its wings are bright white with a pattern of neat black blotches, some solid and some hollow. The overside of the abdomen is dark blue with orange markings, while the underside is white with solid black spots, and males have a narrow yellow line on the sides. Their legs have black and white bands. Adult moths are strictly nocturnal and do not generally fly before nightfall.
This species has a notable sexual dimorphism in size, with the adult male reaching about 51 mm (2 in) in length, while the adult female grows up to 30 mm (1.2 in). The leopard moth requires two years to complete its round of life. In Missouri, adults are on the wing from May to September and are multivoltine. During mating sessions, the wings of the male cover most of the female's abdomen, which can sometimes lead to the loss of wing scales in the female and have negative effects on her flight efficiency. Their mating sessions are notably long-lasting, taking more than 24 hours. They stay mostly immobile during the whole process, but move from spot to spot to thermoregulate, walking into shadowy areas if too hot or into sunlight if too cold. The male effectuates the locomotion, while the female folds her legs to make her easier to carry.
The caterpillar is of the "woolly bear" kind, with a thick coat of black bristles (setae) and red or orange bands between its segments, which become conspicuous when the caterpillar rolls into a ball for defense. Like the banded woolly bear, its hairs are not urticant nor venomous and do not typically cause irritation. The moth overwinters as a caterpillar, often under the bark of decaying wood. The caterpillar grows to be 7.6 cm (3 in) long. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Congaree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Big Cypress National Preserve | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Point Pelee National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | San Antonio | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Orlando | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Monterrey | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 10 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Giant Leopard Moth sighting in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 105 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 42nd most-seen of the 822 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Giant Leopard Moth in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in December, the lowest month.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Giant Leopard Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 7 parks where we can rate Giant Leopard Moth sightings, Great Smoky Mountains National Park ranks 3rd at about 20%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Shenandoah National Park (United States, about 20%) and Congaree National Park (United States, about 20%).
Same family: Erebidae
The closest relatives of the Giant Leopard Moth that you can see in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (family Erebidae, Underwing, Tiger, Tussock, and Allied Moths) are Banded Tussock Moth (about 30%), Leconte's Haploa Moth (about 20%) and Sycamore Tussock Moth (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Giant Leopard Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (105 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
