Agrotis clavis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Agrotis clavis (also known as the heart and club) is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is distributed throughout the Palearctic realm. The common name of this species refers to the supposed shapes of the bold dark stigmata on the usually pale forewings. In this species all the stigmata have a rounded shape, contrasting with the elongated claviform stigmata of the much commoner heart and dart. The hindwings are grey, usually much darker than in heart and dart and turnip moth. The differences are not consistent however; they are highly variable in both colour and markings, and identification of atypical or worn examples may prove impossible without examination of genitalia.See Townsend et al. The wingspan is 35–40 mm.
The main habitat is calcareous grassland. The moth flies at night in June and July [1] and is attracted to light and sugar. The larva, which is dark brown with a pattern of black dots in its final instar, feeds on a variety of herbaceous plants (see list below). The young larva feeds on the leaves of the food plant, later feeding on the roots. It overwinters as a full-grown larva in a cavity in the soil before pupating in the spring.
^The flight season refers to the British Isles. This may vary in other parts of the range depending on the weather. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vanoise National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Mercantour National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 3 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 4 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 5 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 3 | Brussels | 🇧🇪 Belgium | |
| 4 | Hamburg | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 5 | Copenhagen | 🇩🇰 Denmark | |
| 6 | Berlin | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 7 | Essen | 🇩🇪 Germany |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Heart And Club sighting in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 408th most-seen of the 818 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.
June and July
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Heart And Club in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to May, the lowest months.
Between 10 pm and 1 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Heart And Club 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.
3rd of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Heart And Club sightings, Wadden Sea National Park ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Vanoise National Park (France, about 10%) and Mercantour National Park (France, about 10%).
Same genus: Agrotis
The closest relatives of the Heart And Club that you can see in Wadden Sea National Park (genus Agrotis) are Shuttle-Shaped Dart (about 10%), Ipsilon Dart Moth (about 10%) and Archer's Dart (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Heart And Club is recorded against all the insects logged in Wadden Sea National Park (13 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.
