Diparopsis castanea
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Diparopsis castanea is the type species of the genus Diparopsis: moths in the family Noctuidae; no subspecies are listed in the Catalogue of Life. This is known as the red bollworm, which is a significant pest of cotton crops in Eastern and Central-Southern Africa.
Diparopsis castanea is oligophagous: being totally restricted to cultivated and wild cotton (Gossypium spp.), and a rare wild host plant: Cienfuegosia hildebrandtii (also in the tribe Gossypieae). The sky blue eggs are laid singly on stems leaves and bracts and hatch in to larvae that rapidly seek out and penetrate seed capsules (i.e. bolls). The most effective chemical treatments against this pest include sprays that are directed against the eggs and first instar, because after this stage the larvae remain inside the bolls. The main infestation occurs during mid to late crop stage, and as the pupae can undergo diapause, the pest readily survives the dry season.
Integrated pest management includes implementation of a close season, during which farmers' fields must be cleared of all cotton plant material for at least two months; this has been mandatory in... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Cotton Red Boll-Worm sighting in Kruger National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 656th most-seen of the 748 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.
November and December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Cotton Red Boll-Worm in Kruger National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January to October, the lowest months. Those are among Kruger National Park's wettest months, with about 75 mm of rain a month against almost none in August.
Between 4 and 7 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Cotton Red Boll-Worm sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Only Kruger National Park, in our data
Kruger National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Cotton Red Boll-Worm sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Noctuidae
The closest relatives of the Cotton Red Boll-Worm that you can see in Kruger National Park (family Noctuidae, Cutworm Moths and Allies) are Shadow Droplet (about 10%), Acontia discoidea (about 10%) and The Banner (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Cotton Red Boll-Worm is recorded against all the insects logged in Kruger National Park (5 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.
