Euptoieta hegesia
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
Euptoieta hegesia, the Mexican fritillary, is a North and South American butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. The upperside of the wings is bright orange with the basal part of the hindwing unmarked. There is a row of submarginal black spots on both the forewing and the hindwing. The underside of the wings is yellow orange with no submarginal black spots. It has a wingspan of 2.5 to 3 inches.
The only similar species in the Mexican fritillary's range is the variegated fritillary (Euptoieta claudia). The variegated fritillary has black median lines on the upperside of the hindwing, and on the underside of the hindwing it has a pale postmedian band.
The Mexican fritillary may be seen from mid-June to November in Arizona, from July to December in Texas and year-round in Mexico. This species may be encountered in a wide range of open habitats and gardens. The larva is shiny red, with middorsal silver spots edged with black. It has a subdorsal row of white spots ringed with black, a spiracular silver line with black edges, and six rows of black spines. The red head has two long black spines with clubbed ends... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cabo Pulmo National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Jaragua National Park | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | |
| 3 | Ostional Wildlife Refuge | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Anavilhanas National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Santa Rosa National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 6 | Rincón de la Vieja National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 7 | Bahía de Loreto National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 8 | Biotopo Cerro Cahuí | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 9 | Marino Ballena National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 10 | Las Baulas Marine National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 11 | Corcovado National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 12 | Cañón del Sumidero National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 13 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 14 | Parque Natural Metropolitano | 🇵🇦 Panama |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Mexican Fritillary sighting in Fortaleza on a given day, based on 47 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 4th most-seen of the 112 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January to April
In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Mexican Fritillary in Fortaleza on a given day, against under 5% in October and December, the lowest months. Those are among Fortaleza's wettest months, with about 190 mm of rain a month against almost none in September.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mexican Fritillary sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 25
Of the 25 cities where we can rate Mexican Fritillary sightings, Fortaleza ranks 5th at about 30%. The best odds are in São Luís (Brazil, about 50%), Natal (Brazil, about 40%) and Salvador (Brazil, about 40%).
Same family: Nymphalidae
The closest relatives of the Mexican Fritillary that you can see in Fortaleza (family Nymphalidae, Brush-footed Butterflies) are White Peacock (about 30%), Variable Cracker (about 30%) and Southern Monarch (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mexican Fritillary is recorded against all the insects logged in Fortaleza (47 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.
