Hermetia illucens
In 3 days ~70% in a week ~90%
Hermetia illucens, known colloquially as the black soldier fly, is a widespread fly of the family Stratiomyidae. Black soldier fly larvae are commonly utilized in composting systems due to their ability to rapidly break down food waste. In recent years, H. illucens has increasingly been gaining attention because of its hyperaccumulation of protein and fats via consumption of renewable substrates.
This species is native to the Neotropical realm, but in recent decades has spread across all continents, becoming virtually cosmopolitan. It is present in parts of North America and Europe, including the Iberian Peninsula, southern France, Italy, Croatia, Malta, the Canary Islands, and Switzerland, and on the Black Sea coast of Russia in Krasnodar.
It can also be found in the Afrotropical realm, the Australasian realm, the east Palaearctic realm, the Nearctic realm, North Africa, Southern Africa, and the Indomalayan realm, including South Asia such as India and Pakistan.
The adults of H. illucens measure about 16 millimetres (5⁄8 in) long. These medium-sized flies have a predominantly black body, with metallic reflections ranging from blue to green on the... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cần Thơ | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 2 | Davao City | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 3 | Raipur | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Monrovia | 🇱🇷 Liberia | |
| 5 | Thrissur | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Goiânia | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 7 | Nanchang | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 8 | Tiruppur | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Thiruvananthapuram | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Tasikmalaya | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Black Soldier Fly sighting in Lusaka on a given day, based on 24 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 12th most-seen of the 72 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Black Soldier Fly in Lusaka on a given day, against under 5% in April and June–August, the lowest months. That is one of Lusaka's wettest months, with about 150 mm of rain against almost none in August.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black Soldier Fly sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
11th of 147
Of the 147 cities where we can rate Black Soldier Fly sightings, Lusaka ranks 11th at about 30%. The best odds are in Cần Thơ (Vietnam, about 50%), Davao City (Philippines, about 40%) and Raipur (India, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Black Soldier Fly is recorded against all the insects logged in Lusaka (24 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.
