Cordulephya pygmaea
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Cordulephya pygmaea is a species of dragonfly in the family Austrocorduliidae, and is commonly known as the common shutwing. It is endemic to eastern Australia, where it inhabits streams. It is small to tiny in size, black or purplish-black with yellowish markings.
Unusually for Anisoptera, it rests with its wings folded above its body in a similar manner to many damselflies. The genus name Cordulephya combines Cordulia, a genus name derived from the Greek κορδύλη (kordylē, "club" or "cudgel"), with Greek φυή (phyē, "form", "stature" or "growth"), thus meaning "having the form of Cordulia".
The species name pygmaea is derived from the Greek πυγμαῖος (pygmaios, "pygmy" or "dwarf"), referring to its small size. List of Odonata species of Australia Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Common Shutwing sighting in Melbourne on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 703rd most-seen of the 875 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Common Shutwing in Melbourne on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Shutwing sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 2 cities where we can rate Common Shutwing sightings, Melbourne ranks 2nd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Brisbane (Australia, under 5%).
Same family: Corduliidae
The closest relatives of the Common Shutwing that you can see in Melbourne (family Corduliidae, Emerald Dragonflies) are Tau Emerald (about 20%) and Australian Emerald Dragonfly (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Shutwing is recorded against all the insects logged in Melbourne (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.
