Amblysomus hottentotus
Silhouette: T. Michael Keesey · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The Hottentot golden mole (Amblysomus hottentotus) is a species of mammal in the golden mole family, Chrysochloridae. It is found in South Africa, Eswatini, and possibly Lesotho. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, subtropical or tropical dry and moist lowland forest and dry shrubland and grassland, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, savanna, temperate grassland, sandy shores, arable land, pastureland, plantations, rural gardens, and urban areas.
It has several subspecies, including the Zulu golden mole (Amblysomus hottentotus iris). In 2013 it was discovered that Hottentot golden moles prefer mates with larger penises. Hottentot golden mole at Animal Diversity Web Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
No species of the same family or order lives in Durban, so these are its closest relatives here: other mammals.
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Hottentot Golden Mole sighting in Durban on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 10th most-seen of the 15 mammals 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.
April–May, July and October–December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Hottentot Golden Mole in Durban on a given day, against under 5% in January–March, June and August–September, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hottentot Golden Mole sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Durban, in our data
Durban is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Hottentot Golden Mole sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Hottentot Golden Mole is recorded against all the mammals logged in Durban (13 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.
