Tarucus thespis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Tarucus thespis, the fynbos blue or vivid blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in South Africa, from the Northern Cape, south to fynbos in the West Cape and east to the Amathole Mountains in the Eastern Cape.
The wingspan is 20–25 mm for males and 20–27 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round, with peaks from September to November and from February to March. The larvae feed on Phylica imberbis and Saxifraga species. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | De Hoop Nature Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Vivid Pierrot sighting in Cape Town on a given day, based on 23 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 149th most-seen of the 311 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February and September–November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Vivid Pierrot in Cape Town on a given day, against under 5% in March–August and December–January, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Vivid Pierrot sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Cape Town, in our data
Cape Town is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Vivid Pierrot sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Lycaenidae
The closest relatives of the Vivid Pierrot that you can see in Cape Town (family Lycaenidae, Gossamer-winged Butterflies) are African Grass Blue (about 20%), Geranium Bronze (about 10%) and Water Geranium Bronze (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Vivid Pierrot is recorded against all the insects logged in Cape Town (23 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.
