Dryocampa rubicunda
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
Dryocampa rubicunda, the rosy maple moth, is a small North American moth in the family Saturniidae, also known as the great silk moths. It was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1793. The species is known for its wooly body and pink and yellow coloration, which varies from cream or white to bright pink or yellow. Males have bushier antennae than females, which allow them to sense female pheromones for mating.
As the common name of the species implies, the preferred host trees are maple trees. Adult females lay their yellow ovular eggs in groups of 10 to 40 on the underside of maple leaves. The emerging caterpillars, also known as the greenstriped mapleworm, mainly feed on the leaves of their host maple trees, particularly red maple, silver maple, and sugar maple. Since the caterpillars eat the entire leaf blade, in dense populations, caterpillars have been known to defoliate trees, resulting in aesthetic rather than permanent damage. However, like all other Saturniid moths, the adult moths do not eat.
The rosy maple moth is the smallest of the silk moths; males have a wingspan of 3.2 to 4.4 centimeters (1.25-1.75 in); females of 3.8 to 5 centimeters... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Voyageurs National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Cape Breton Highlands National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Congaree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Rosy Maple Moth sighting in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 237 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 18th most-seen of the 822 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Rosy Maple Moth in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November to March, the lowest months.
Between 10 pm and 1 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Rosy Maple Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
2nd of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Rosy Maple Moth sightings, Great Smoky Mountains National Park ranks 2nd at about 30%. The best odds are in Voyageurs National Park (United States, about 60%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Saturniidae
The closest relatives of the Rosy Maple Moth that you can see in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (family Saturniidae, Emperor and Giant Silk Moths) are North American Luna Moth (about 30%), Imperial Moth (about 20%) and Tulip-Tree Silkmoth (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Rosy Maple Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (237 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.
