Thymelicus lineola
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Thymelicus lineola, known in Europe as the Essex skipper and in North America as the European skipper, is a species of butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. With a wingspan of 2.5 to 2.9 cm (0.98 to 1.14 in), it is very similar in appearance to the small skipper, Thymelicus sylvestris. They can be told apart by the forward-facing flattish part of the antenna tip: in the Essex Skipper this face is black, whereas in the Small Skipper it is orange or brown. In males, there is a difference in the scent mark. In Essex Skipper this is a fine, straight, short dark line on the forewing, parallel to the wing edge; in the Small Skipper males, this line is bolder and bent. This butterfly occurs throughout much of the Palaearctic region. Its range is from southern Scandinavia through Europe to North Africa and east to Central Asia. It was only identified in the UK in 1889, and its range is expanding both in England and in northern Europe. In North America, this butterfly was accidentally introduced in 1910 via London, Ontario and has spread across southern Canada and into several northern US states. In many parts of the Northeastern United States it is the most abundant skipper. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elk Island National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Gros Morne National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Mercantour National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 4 | Vanoise National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 5 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Ecrins National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 7 | Riding Mountain National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 8 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | Grand Teton National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Glacier National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Jasper National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 12 | Hohe Tauern National Park | 🇦🇹 Austria | |
| 13 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 14 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 15 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 16 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 17 | Banff National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Helsinki | 🇫🇮 Finland | |
| 2 | Edmonton | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Kharkiv | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | |
| 4 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 6 | London | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 7 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 8 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Budapest | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 10 | Warsaw | 🇵🇱 Poland |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Essex Skipper sighting in Boston on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 612th most-seen of the 1200 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.
June
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Essex Skipper in Boston on a given day, against under 5% in July to May, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Essex 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.
25th of 27
Of the 27 cities where we can rate Essex Skipper sightings, Boston ranks 25th at under 5%. The best odds are in Helsinki (Finland, about 20%), Edmonton (Canada, about 10%) and Kharkiv (Ukraine, about 10%).
Same family: Hesperiidae
The closest relatives of the Essex Skipper that you can see in Boston (family Hesperiidae, Skippers) are Zabulon Skipper (about 20%), Peck's Skipper (about 10%) and Silver-Spotted Skipper (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Essex Skipper is recorded against all the insects logged in Boston (15 verified sightings), 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.
