Scopula rubiginata
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Scopula rubiginata, the tawny wave, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Johann Siegfried Hufnagel in 1767. Subspecies Scopula rubiginata ochraceata Staudinger, 1901 is mostly treated as a species, Scopula ochraceata.
The Latin species name rubiginata means "rusty", with reference to the coloration of the wings. This species is present from the Iberian Peninsula up to the Ural. In the North its range extends to Denmark and Southern Sweden and Finland. It is not present in most of the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula (with the exception of Gibraltar), Sicily and the southern Greek islands. In Morocco it is found in the Atlas mountains. Furthermore, it is also present in North Turkey, the Caucasus and the Crimea. Eastwards, its range stretches through southern Siberia, the northern central Asian mountains up to Mongolia. These moths preferably inhabit sandy terrain, such as sand dunes dry-warm environment, grasslands and heath, at an elevation up to 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) above sea level.
Scopula rubiginata has a wingspan of 16–22 mm. These moths are rather small... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 3 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Tawny Wave sighting in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 536th 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 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Tawny Wave in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to June, the lowest months.
Between 9 pm and midnight
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Tawny Wave 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 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Tawny Wave sightings, Wadden Sea National Park ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Cévennes National Park (France, about 10%) and Pyrénées National Park (France, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Tawny Wave is recorded against all the insects logged in Wadden Sea National Park (10 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.
