Evania appendigaster
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Evania appendigaster, also known as the blue-eyed ensign wasp, is a species of wasp in the family Evaniidae. Its native range is not known, but it likely originated in Asia (Specifically tropical or oriental regions). Today it occurs throughout the tropics and subtropics and in many temperate regions. As with the rest of its family, the blue-eyed ensign wasp is a parasitoid known for specializing on cockroach eggs.
This is one of the larger ensign wasps, with forewings up to about 7 millimeters long. It is distinguished from other species by the wide separation of the first and second sections of the coxa, the segment of the leg that attaches to the body. Its body is black in color with contrasting blue eyes. The abdominal petiole, the constricted stalk that holds the posterior section of the abdomen, or gaster, is attached high on the body. The gaster is laterally compressed and oval to nearly triangular in shape, held in a flaglike fashion and resembling an ensign, a characteristic of the family that inspired the common name ensign wasp.
This wasp reproduces by laying eggs into egg cases, or oothecae, of cockroaches. The wasp larvae use the cockroach... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tijuca National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 3 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Galápagos Islands | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 5 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Casablanca | 🇲🇦 Morocco | |
| 2 | Davao City | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 3 | Karachi | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | |
| 4 | São Luís | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Valencia | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Mendoza | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 7 | Santo Domingo | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | |
| 8 | Manaus | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | Valencia | 🇻🇪 Venezuela | |
| 10 | Dhaka | 🇧🇩 Bangladesh |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Blue-Eyed Ensign Wasp sighting in Kaohsiung on a given day, based on 19 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 80th most-seen of the 218 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Blue-Eyed Ensign Wasp in Kaohsiung on a given day, against under 5% in December and January, the lowest months. That is one of Kaohsiung's wettest months, with about 240 mm of rain against 25 mm in February.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Blue-Eyed Ensign Wasp sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
41st of 84
Of the 84 cities where we can rate Blue-Eyed Ensign Wasp sightings, Kaohsiung ranks 41st at about 10%. The best odds are in Casablanca (Morocco, about 30%), Davao City (Philippines, about 30%) and Karachi (Pakistan, about 20%).
Same order: Hymenoptera
The closest relatives of the Blue-Eyed Ensign Wasp that you can see in Kaohsiung (order Hymenoptera, Ants, Bees, Wasps, and Sawflies) are Asian Honey Bee (about 20%), Red Dwarf Honey Bee (about 20%) and Delta pyriforme (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Blue-Eyed Ensign Wasp is recorded against all the insects logged in Kaohsiung (19 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.
