Acherontia atropos
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Acherontia atropos, the African death's-head hawkmoth, is the most widely recognized of three species within the genus Acherontia (the other two being Acherontia lachesis and Acherontia styx). It is most commonly identified by the vaguely skull-shaped pattern adorning the thorax, the characteristic from which its common and scientific names are derived. The species was first given its scientific name by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Death's-head hawk moths are large, ranging from 3.5 to 5 inches (80–120 mm) as adults. The upper wings are dark, creating a stark contrast between them and the lower wings, which range from a bright yellow to a light cream, yellow being the more common.
It is commonly found in Southern Europe and throughout much of Africa, from where it is considered to be a native species. Annually, A. atropos migrates to parts of Great Britain, most numerously to the British Isles, where it is less commonly seen than in its native place of residency. However, sometimes it appears as far north as above the Arctic Circle, e.g. in northern Sweden (68°12’21.3”N 21°50’18.1”E). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 5 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 6 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Death's Head Hawkmoth sighting in Cape Town on a given day, based on 91 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 49th most-seen of the 311 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November to June
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Death's Head Hawkmoth in Cape Town on a given day, against under 5% in July to October, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Death's Head Hawkmoth sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 13
Of the 13 cities where we can rate Death's Head Hawkmoth sightings, Cape Town ranks 5th at about 10%. The best odds are in Johannesburg (South Africa, about 20%), Harare (Zimbabwe, about 10%) and Pretoria (South Africa, about 10%).
Same family: Sphingidae
The closest relatives of the Death's Head Hawkmoth that you can see in Cape Town (family Sphingidae, Sphinx Moths) are Common Striped Hawkmoth (about 10%), African Hummingbird Hawkmoth (about 10%) and Fulvous Hawk (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Death's Head Hawkmoth is recorded against all the insects logged in Cape Town (91 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.
