Spodoptera picta
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
Spodoptera picta, the lily caterpillar, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It was described by Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville in 1838. It is found from India, South-east Asia and Japan through Indonesia, Australia and the western part of South Pacific ocean to Fiji. Its caterpillars feeds on the leaves of plants in the Amaryllidaceae and Liliaceae families, and can be a significant pest in gardens.
The wingspan is about 40 mm. It is generally an ochreous-white moth, the head and thorax suffused with pinkish red. The forewings have some red on their costal base; there are numerous ill-defined waved black lines present between the base and antemedial line: the orbicular and claviform consisting of black rings; a medial pinkish red band, wide at costa narrowing to inner margin; the reniform with ochreous and black outlines and red centre; the postmedial double waved lines are filled in with ochreous and highly excurved beyond the cell; some black dashes can be seen on reddish patches beyond it. The hindwings are semi-hyaline white.
Caterpillars have smooth skin and are pale grey with a series of longitudinal black lines. Mesothorax also has dark patches with last abdominal... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lily Caterpillar Moth sighting in Royal National Park on a given day, based on 16 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 57th most-seen of the 175 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March to May
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Lily Caterpillar Moth in Royal National Park on a given day, against under 5% in July–September and November–December, the lowest months.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lily Caterpillar Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Lily Caterpillar Moth sightings, Royal National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Daintree National Park (Australia, about 10%) and Blue Mountains National Park (Australia, about 10%).
Same family: Noctuidae
The closest relatives of the Lily Caterpillar Moth that you can see in Royal National Park (family Noctuidae, Cutworm Moths and Allies) are Australian Grapevine Moth (about 10%), Common Whistling Moth (about 10%) and Platagarista macleayi (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lily Caterpillar Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Royal National Park (16 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.
