Agrotis ipsilon
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Agrotis ipsilon, the dark sword-grass, ipsilon dart, black cutworm, greasy cutworm or floodplain cutworm, is a small noctuid moth found worldwide. The moth gets its scientific name from black markings on its forewings shaped like the letter "Y" or the Greek letter upsilon. The larvae are known as "cutworms" because they cut plants and other crops. The larvae are serious agricultural pests and feed on nearly all varieties of vegetables and many important grains.
This species is a seasonal migrant that travels north in the spring and south in the fall to escape extreme temperatures in the summer and winter. The migration patterns reflect how reproduction occurs in the spring and ceases in the fall.
Females release sex pheromones to attract males for mating. Pheromone production and release in females and pheromone responsiveness in males is dependent on the juvenile hormone (JH) and pheromone biosynthesis activating neuropeptide (BPAN). In the span of 2 months, the moth progresses through the life cycle stages egg, larvae, pupa, and adult. Throughout this time period, this moth faces the risk of predation and parasitism, such as by Hexamermis arvalis or by the parasite Archytas cirphis... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rakiura National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 2 | Egmont National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 3 | Abel Tasman National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 4 | Fiordland National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 5 | Arthur's Pass National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 6 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 7 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Sierra Nevada National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 12 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 13 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 14 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 15 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 16 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Auckland | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 2 | Porto | 🇵🇹 Portugal | |
| 3 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Rome | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 7 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Madrid | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Ipsilon Dart Moth sighting in Shenandoah National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 571st most-seen of the 723 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.
July to October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Ipsilon Dart Moth in Shenandoah National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November to June, the lowest months.
Between 9 pm and midnight
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Ipsilon Dart Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
15th of 16
Of the 16 parks where we can rate Ipsilon Dart Moth sightings, Shenandoah National Park ranks 15th at under 5%. The best odds are in Rakiura National Park (New Zealand, about 20%), Egmont National Park (New Zealand, about 20%) and Abel Tasman National Park (New Zealand, about 10%).
Same family: Noctuidae
The closest relatives of the Ipsilon Dart Moth that you can see in Shenandoah National Park (family Noctuidae, Cutworm Moths and Allies) are Beautiful Wood-Nymph (about 20%), American Dagger (about 10%) and Eight-Spotted Forester Moth (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Ipsilon Dart Moth is recorded against all the insects logged in Shenandoah National Park (6 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.
