Carcharodus alceae
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Carcharodus alceae, commonly known as the mallow skipper, is a species of butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. The scientific Latin species name alceae refers to the host plants Althaea, which, in turn, are named after the ancient Greek poet Alcaeus of Mytilene.
The background colour of the forewings is pinkish brown, with approximately square brown markings, short, white transverse stripes running from the edge and clear patches on the discal area. Hindwings are brownish or grey-brown, with some prominent brighter spots on the underside. Males are without hair tuft on forewings underside. Antennae have cherry brown tips.
The eggs are yellowish and hemispherical and the surface is covered with elongated warts, connected each other with low ribs. The egg has a prickly appearance. In the course of the development they turn red. The caterpillars can reach a length of about 23 millimetres (0.91 in). They are dark... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 2 | Picos de Europa National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 4 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 5 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Mallow Skipper sighting in Cévennes National Park on a given day, based on 32 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 217th most-seen of the 996 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.
August
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Mallow Skipper in Cévennes National Park on a given day, against under 5% in October to March, the lowest months. That is one of Cévennes National Park's driest months, with about 55 mm of rain against 260 mm in October.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mallow Skipper sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Mallow Skipper sightings, Cévennes National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Aigüestortes National Park (Spain, about 10%) and Picos de Europa National Park (Spain, about 10%).
Same family: Hesperiidae
The closest relatives of the Mallow Skipper that you can see in Cévennes National Park (family Hesperiidae, Skippers) are Far Eastern Large Skipper (about 20%), Southern Grizzled Skipper (about 10%) and Red-Underwing Skipper (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mallow Skipper is recorded against all the insects logged in Cévennes National Park (32 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.
