Thysanoplusia orichalcea
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Thysanoplusia orichalcea, the slender burnished brass, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775. It is a polyphagous pest of vegetable crops that originated in Indonesia, from where it spread to Europe, South Asia, India, Sri Lanka, Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In northern Europe it is a migrant species.
The wingspan is 36–44 mm. Its head, collar and the vertex of its head are reddish orange. Tegulae and forewings pale reddish brown. The forewings are extensively covered with a metallic golden shimmering surface. Only the costal field and hem are brown. Sub-basal, antemedial and postmedial waved lines very indistinct, fine and whitish in colour. The sub-marginal line irregularly lunulate. The reniform and orbicular stains are small and white bordered. The unpatterned hindwings are grey brown, somewhat darker at the margin. The thorax is furry and with some hair tufts, the proboscis is well developed.
Larva bluish green with a few short dorsal hairs. There are slender dorsal white lines and a prominent lateral line. The moth flies from August to October, depending on the location. The... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Egmont National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 2 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Slender Burnished Brass sighting in Kruger National Park on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 392nd 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 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March to May
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Slender Burnished Brass in Kruger National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June to February, the lowest months. Those are among Kruger National Park's driest months, with about 20 mm of rain a month against 110 mm in February.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Slender Burnished Brass 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.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Slender Burnished Brass sightings, Kruger National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in Egmont National Park (New Zealand, about 10%).
Same family: Noctuidae
The closest relatives of the Slender Burnished Brass 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 Slender Burnished Brass is recorded against all the insects logged in Kruger National Park (10 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.
