Boloria chariclea
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
Boloria chariclea, the Arctic fritillary or purplish fritillary, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in the northern parts of the Palearctic and Nearctic realms. The butterfly flies from July to August depending on the location.
The Arctic fritillary has a Holarctic distribution. In Europe it is found in northern Lapland and Russia. In North America it is found in Alaska and much of Canada, the north Cascades, the Rocky Mountains southwards to Utah and northern New Mexico, northern Minnesota, northern Maine and the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Its typical habitat is tundra, taiga, alpine meadows, stream verges and acid bogs.
The males patrol along the edges of bogs and in valleys and wait for the arrival of females. The eggs are laid singly underneath the leaves of the host plant. In North America the larvae feed on viola species, dwarf willows (Salix) and possibly blueberries (Vaccinium) while in Europe it is believed to feed on yellow wood violet (Viola biflora) and Arctic white heather (Cassiope tetragona). Depending on location, the larvae take one or two years to develop into adults, newly... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nahanni National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Wrangell-St. Elias National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Denali National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Banff National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Jasper National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Olympic National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Rocky Mountain National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report an Arctic Fritillary sighting in Banff National Park on a given day, based on 116 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 8th most-seen of the 105 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July and August
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report an Arctic Fritillary in Banff National Park on a given day, against under 5% in October to June, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Arctic Fritillary sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 8
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Arctic Fritillary sightings, Banff National Park ranks 4th at about 20%. The best odds are in Nahanni National Park (Canada, about 60%), Wrangell-St. Elias National Park (United States, about 30%) and Denali National Park (United States, about 20%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Boloria
The closest relatives of the Arctic Fritillary that you can see in Banff National Park (genus Boloria, Lesser Fritillaries) are Bog Fritillary (about 10%) and Freija Fritillary (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Arctic Fritillary is recorded against all the insects logged in Banff National Park (116 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.
