Asota speciosa
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Asota speciosa, the specious tiger, formerly Aganais speciosa, is a moth of the subfamily Aganainae, now regarded as part of the family Erebidae. Formerly it was regarded variously as a member of the Arctiidae, the Hypsidae, and subsequently the family Aganaidae, which was formerly regarded as a family by some authorities. The species is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa, such as in Sierra Leone, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Mozambique and South Africa.
The larvae feed on certain latex-rich plants, mainly Ficus species (fig trees), both indigenous and domestic, but also on poisonous Acokanthera species. They sabotage the latex defences of their host plants by biting partway through the midrib, severing the latex vessels before proceeding to feed on the portion of the leaf blade distal to the sabotage, which is no longer supplied with latex. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Nairobi | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 3 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Specious Tiger sighting in Cape Town on a given day, based on 95 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 46th 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.
January to March
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Specious Tiger in Cape Town on a given day, against under 5% in May to September, the lowest months. Those are among Cape Town's driest months, with about 20 mm of rain a month against 140 mm in June.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Specious Tiger sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is seen both by day and at night.
Yes
Of the 5 cities where we can rate Specious Tiger sightings, Cape Town has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Nairobi (Kenya, about 10%) and Johannesburg (South Africa, about 10%).
Same family: Erebidae
The closest relatives of the Specious Tiger that you can see in Cape Town (family Erebidae, Underwing, Tiger, Tussock, and Allied Moths) are Brown Tricolour Tiger Moth (about 20%), Heady Maiden (about 20%) and Zebra Ermine (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Specious Tiger is recorded against all the insects logged in Cape Town (95 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.
