Papilio dardanus
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
Papilio dardanus, the Saharan swallowtail, African swallowtail, mocker swallowtail or flying handkerchief, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae (the swallowtails). The species is broadly distributed throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. The British entomologist E. B. Poulton described it as "the most interesting butterfly in the world".
Molecular studies have provided evidence that this species' closest relative is Papilio phorcas, with Papilio constantinus being the next closest (see images below). It is a member of the Papilio genus of which Papilio appalachiensis and Papilio xuthus are also members.
Papilio dardanus is the nominal member of the dardanus species group. Papilio rex Oberthür, 1886 Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kibale National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 2 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 4 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 5 | Bwindi Impenetrable National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 6 | Murchison Falls National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 7 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 8 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Mocker Swallowtail sighting in Lubango on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June and September
In those months about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Mocker Swallowtail in Lubango on a given day, against about 10% in November, the lowest month. Those are among Lubango's driest months, with almost no rain against 210 mm in March. February–May and July–August have too few records to rate.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mocker Swallowtail sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 4 cities where we can rate Mocker Swallowtail sightings, Lubango has the highest daily chance: about 50%. Next come Kampala (Uganda, about 30%) and Nairobi (Kenya, about 30%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mocker Swallowtail is recorded against all the insects logged in Lubango (7 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.
