Abraxas grossulariata
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Abraxas grossulariata is a moth of the family Geometridae, native to the Palearctic realm and North America. Its distinctive speckled coloration has given it a common name of magpie moth. The caterpillar is similarly coloured to the adult, and may be found feeding on the leaves of shrubs such as gooseberry and blackcurrant. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
The length of the forewing is 18–25 mm. The strikingly patterned forewings have a white ground colour, with six transverse series of black stains, partly associated with a pale yellow basal cross band and another through the central area of the forewing. The hindwings are paler, and have a few, small dark stains.
It is a highly variable species with many different forms. Research using Abraxas grossulariata led to the discovery of sex-linked characteristics. Abraxas grossulariata grossulariata Abraxas grossulariata karafutonis Matsumura, 1925 (Sakhalin) Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Biebrza National Park | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 2 | Cairngorms National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 3 | Snowdonia National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 4 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 5 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kharkiv | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | |
| 2 | Liverpool | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 3 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 4 | Manchester | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 5 | Copenhagen | 🇩🇰 Denmark |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Magpie Moth 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 361st 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 Magpie Moth in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to May, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Magpie Moth sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
4th of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Magpie Moth sightings, Wadden Sea National Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Biebrza National Park (Poland, about 20%), Cairngorms National Park (United Kingdom, about 10%) and Snowdonia National Park (United Kingdom, about 10%).
Same family: Geometridae
The closest relatives of the Magpie Moth that you can see in Wadden Sea National Park (family Geometridae, Geometer Moths) are Riband Wave (about 10%), Yellow Shell Moth (about 10%) and Small Engrailed (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Magpie Moth 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.
