Argia fumipennis
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The variable dancer (Argia fumipennis) is a damselfly of the family Coenagrionidae. It is native to North America, where it is widespread throughout the east and present in the interior western United States. The male of the subspecies A. f. violacea (the violet dancer) is purple with a blue tip. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Guadalupe Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Congaree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Orlando | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Variable Dancer sighting in Boston on a given day, based on 122 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 171st most-seen of the 1200 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June to August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Variable Dancer in Boston on a given day, against under 5% in September to May, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Variable Dancer 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 cities where we can rate Variable Dancer sightings, Boston ranks 3rd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Washington (United States, about 10%) and Baltimore (United States, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Variable Dancer is recorded against all the insects logged in Boston (122 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.
