Least Carpet

Least Carpet

Idaea rusticata

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Pyrénées National Park

In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%

14 Verified sightings at Pyrénées National Park From 2019 to 2026
126 In all 5 parks
July Best month
🌙 Nocturnal When it's spotted

About the Least Carpet

Idaea rusticata, the least carpet, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Michael Denis and Ignaz Schiffermüller in 1775. This species can be found in most of Europe, in the Near East and in North Africa. From the Balkan Peninsula, the occurrence continues across the Palearctic though Ukraine, southern Russia and Asia Minor to the Caucasus and from there via northern Iran, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan to the Central Asian mountains as far as Mongolia. Of all moths in Britain it showed the greatest percentage increase in abundance between 1968 and 2007, and expanded its range beyond the vicinity of London.

These moths inhabit wastelands, open places, parks and well exposed gardens. Idaea rusticata has a wingspan of 19–21 mm. The length of the forewings is 9–11 mm. The edges of the wings are fringed. The basic colour is whitish or cream, sometimes with a very light brownish tone. The upperside of the forewings shows in the midfield a dark brown to red-brown transverse drawing, with a point-shaped black spot, always within the dark field. This brown marking runs from the front to the rear edge... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~20%
2 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
3 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
4 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
5 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 London 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~20%
2 Budapest 🇭🇺 Hungary
~20%
3 Vienna 🇦🇹 Austria
~10%
4 Kyiv 🇺🇦 Ukraine
~10%
5 Bucharest 🇷🇴 Romania
~10%
6 Lyon 🇫🇷 France
~10%
7 Essen 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
8 Sofia 🇧🇬 Bulgaria
~10%
9 Paris 🇫🇷 France
~10%
10 Berlin 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Least Carpet in Pyrénées National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Least Carpet sighting in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, based on 14 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 576th most-seen of the 1277 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.

When is the best time to see a Least Carpet in Pyrénées National Park?

June and July

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Least Carpet in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to May, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Least Carpet?

Between 10 pm and 1 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Least Carpet sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is mostly seen at night.

Which relatives of the Least Carpet live in Pyrénées National Park?

Same genus: Idaea

The closest relatives of the Least Carpet that you can see in Pyrénées National Park (genus Idaea) are Riband Wave (about 10%), Small Fan-Footed Wave (about 10%) and Portland Ribbon Wave (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Least Carpet sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Least Carpet is recorded against all the insects logged in Pyrénées National Park (14 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.

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