Pyrausta lethalis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Pyrausta lethalis, the lethal pyrausta moth, is a moth in the family Crambidae. It was described by Augustus Radcliffe Grote in 1881. It is found in North America, where it has been recorded from California (the Mojave Desert, Los Angeles) to southern Nevada, southern Arizona and Texas (the Big Bend region).
The wingspan is about 16 mm. The forewings are purplish brown with a dark brown exterior line. The subterminal area is pale brown, shaded with whitish. The hindwings are pale fuscous with a black terminal line. Adults have been recorded on wing from March to October. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Lethal Pyrausta sighting in Joshua Tree National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 147th most-seen of the 190 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March and April
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lethal Pyrausta in Joshua Tree National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May to February, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lethal Pyrausta sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
Only Joshua Tree National Park, in our data
Joshua Tree National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Lethal Pyrausta sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lethal Pyrausta is recorded against all the insects logged in Joshua Tree National Park (7 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.
