Sympetrum flaveolum
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The yellow-winged darter (Sympetrum flaveolum) is a dragonfly found in Europe and mid and northern China. Breeding is confined to stagnant water, usually in peat bogs. Although not resident in the United Kingdom it occasionally migrates there in some numbers. Such 'Invasion Years' occurred in 1906, 1926, 1945, 1953, and 1995. On each occasion a small breeding colony appeared, but they have invariably died out after a few years.
An almost unmistakable darter, red-bodied in the male, with both sexes having large amounts of saffron-yellow colouration to the basal area of each wing, which is particularly noticeable on the hind-wings. Other Sympetrum species may have limited yellow-orange colouration near the extreme wing-bases, especially in females, but never so extensively as in this species.
Sites which are likely to attract this species have thick rushy margins. The yellow-winged darter tends to make quite short flights when settled at a site, and frequently perches quite low down on vegetation. The yellow-winged darter has bred but is not established in the UK. It has occurred in Cumbria as single individuals on very few occasions. The most recent record was at Killington Reservoir in August 1995.
In Southern Europe, the nymphs of this dragonfly live in oligotrophic lakes with submerged vegetation, at high altitudes. As an abundant predator, the species has an important role in food chains of high altitude lakes. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 2 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 3 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Novosibirsk | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 2 | Helsinki | 🇫🇮 Finland | |
| 3 | Yekaterinburg | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 4 | Nizhny Novgorod | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 5 | Moscow | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 6 | Kazan | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 7 | Saint Petersburg | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 8 | Minsk | 🇧🇾 Belarus |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-Winged Darter sighting in Helsinki on a given day, based on 78 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 73rd most-seen of the 838 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July and August
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-Winged Darter in Helsinki on a given day, against under 5% in October to June, the lowest months.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Yellow-Winged Darter sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 8
Of the 8 cities where we can rate Yellow-Winged Darter sightings, Helsinki ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Novosibirsk (Russia, about 20%).
Same genus: Sympetrum
The closest relatives of the Yellow-Winged Darter that you can see in Helsinki (genus Sympetrum, Meadowhawks) are Vagrant Darter (about 30%), Black Meadowhawk (about 10%) and Ruddy Darter (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Yellow-Winged Darter is recorded against all the insects logged in Helsinki (78 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.
