Entephria caesiata
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Entephria caesiata, the grey mountain carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. It is found in the mountainous areas of Europe (including Great Britain, Fennoscandia and the Alps), the Caucasus, Asia Minor, Armenia, Russia, Russian Far East, Siberia, northern Mongolia, Sakhalin and Honshū in Japan.
The wingspan is 32–41 millimetres (1.3–1.6 in). The forewing ground colour is ash grey to blue grey. There are several dark wavy bands. The basal area and the field between the two fasciae is also darker than the ground colour. There is a black discal spot. The fringes are grey chequered dark grey. The hindwing is pale grey with pale transverse lines and a grey-black discal spot. See also Prout.
The larva is pinkish brown on the back with yellowish-white, triangular spots, on the greenish sides. Adults are on wing from July to September. The larvae feed on various low heathland plants, including Calluna and Vaccinium myrtillus. Other recorded food plants include Betula species (including Betula nana), Vaccinium uliginosum, Ledum palustre and Empetrum nigrum. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vanoise National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Hohe Tauern National Park | 🇦🇹 Austria | |
| 3 | Mercantour National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Grey Mountain Carpet sighting in Mercantour National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 307th most-seen of the 412 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Grey Mountain Carpet in Mercantour National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to June, the lowest months.
Between 9 pm and midnight
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Grey Mountain Carpet sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
3rd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Grey Mountain Carpet sightings, Mercantour National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Vanoise National Park (France, about 20%) and Hohe Tauern National Park (Austria, about 10%).
Same family: Geometridae
The closest relatives of the Grey Mountain Carpet that you can see in Mercantour National Park (family Geometridae, Geometer Moths) are Common Heath (about 20%), Silver-Ground Carpet (about 20%) and Tissue (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Grey Mountain Carpet is recorded against all the insects logged in Mercantour 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.
