Graphium doson
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Graphium doson, the common jay, is a black, tropical papilionid (swallowtail) butterfly with pale blue semi-transparent central wing bands that are formed by large spots. There is a marginal series of smaller spots. The underside of wings is brown with markings similar to upperside but whitish in colour. The sexes look alike. The species was first described by father and son entomologists Cajetan and Rudolf Felder.
It is widespread and common throughout Southeast Asia, including lower elevations in Sri Lanka and southern India, Eastern Ghats, Satpuras, Bengal, Assam and Bangladesh, and the Himalayan foothills. The species is however scarce in southern Honshū, Japan. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 2 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 3 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 4 | Sinharaja Forest Reserve | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 5 | Bali Barat National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 6 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 7 | Taroko National Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 8 | Khao Sok National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 9 | Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇲🇾 Malaysia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Jay sighting in Hong Kong on a given day, based on 114 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 102nd most-seen of the 1125 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.
May and September
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Common Jay in Hong Kong on a given day, against under 5% in November to February, the lowest months. Those are among Hong Kong's wettest months, with about 190 mm of rain a month against 25 mm in December.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Jay sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
33rd of 41
Of the 41 cities where we can rate Common Jay sightings, Hong Kong ranks 33rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Solapur (India, about 50%), Durg (India, about 40%) and Vijayawada (India, about 40%).
Same genus: Graphium
The closest relatives of the Common Jay that you can see in Hong Kong (genus Graphium, Swordtails, Jays, Bluebottles and allies) are Common Bluebottle (about 20%), Tailed Jay (about 20%) and Five-Bar Swordtail (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Jay is recorded against all the insects logged in Hong Kong (114 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.
