Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing

Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing

Noctua fimbriata

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

In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%

15 Verified sightings at Sierra Nevada National Park From 2019 to 2026
110 In all 7 parks
July Best month
🌙 Nocturnal When it's spotted

About the Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing

Noctua fimbriata, the broad-bordered yellow underwing, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. The species was first described in 1759 by Johann Christian Daniel von Schreber. Noctua fimbriata can be found throughout Europe, including the UK, and in parts of Asia, where it ranges east to the Caucasus, Turkmenistan, and Western Siberia (Novosibirsk Oblast). Its type locality is in Germany.

The wingspan is 45–55 mm. The length of the forewings is 22–27 mm. Forewing ranging from pale ochreous and rufous in the female to red-brown and olive-green in the male; ochreous males are rare; markings slight in the female, strong in the male;inner line dark; outer and submarginal pale; upper stigmata large, pale-edged, often touching; a dark costal blotch before submarginal line: hindwing and fringe orange, with a very broad black border; the pale rufous forms are known as ab. rufa Tutt, and the deep red-brown forms as ab. brunnea Tutt; the dark olive-green males are solani F., while the paler more ochreous green specimens (? males) are ab. virescens Tutt; — a rare and handsome form of the males called by Tutt ab. brunnea-virescens has the... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
2 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
3 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
4 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
5 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
<5%
6 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
7 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Liverpool 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~20%
2 London 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
3 Birmingham 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
4 Kyiv 🇺🇦 Ukraine
~10%
5 Sofia 🇧🇬 Bulgaria
~10%
6 Manchester 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
7 Berlin 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
8 Essen 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
9 Vienna 🇦🇹 Austria
~10%
10 Copenhagen 🇩🇰 Denmark
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing in Sierra Nevada National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing sighting in Sierra Nevada National Park on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 240th most-seen of the 479 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.

When is the best time to see a Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing in Sierra Nevada National Park?

July and August

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing in Sierra Nevada National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to May, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing?

Between 10 pm and 1 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is mostly seen at night.

Is Sierra Nevada National Park the best place to see a Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing?

Yes

Of the 7 parks where we can rate Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing sightings, Sierra Nevada National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Mercantour National Park (France, about 10%) and Wadden Sea National Park (Germany, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing live in Sierra Nevada National Park?

Same genus: Noctua

The closest relatives of the Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing that you can see in Sierra Nevada National Park (genus Noctua, Yellow Underwings) are Large Yellow Underwing (about 10%) and Lesser Yellow Underwing (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing is recorded against all the insects logged in Sierra Nevada National Park (15 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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