Tirumala limniace
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Tirumala limniace, the blue tiger, is a species of butterfly found in South Asia, and Southeast Asia that belongs to the brush-footed butterfly family, Nymphalidae. More specifically it is part of the crows and tigers or danaid group. This butterfly shows gregarious migratory behaviour in southern India. In some places, it may be found in congregations with Danaus genutia, Tirumala septentrionis, Euploea sylvester, Euploea core, Parantica aglea, and at high elevations, with Parantica nilgiriensis, on Crotalaria.
Tirumala limniace is a small butterfly with wide wings. It has a wingspan of 90 to 100 millimeters, with the males being smaller than the females. The upper side of the wing is dark brown to black and patterned with bluish-white, semi-transparent spots and lines. The blue of the bluish-white spots consists of the pigment pterobilin. In general, all butterflies can directly absorb heat from the sun via their wings to facilitate autonomous flight. Studies on blue tiger butterflies show that high-intensity light significantly increased flight activity. Blue tiger butterflies have a wing surface color that is composed of both light and dark colors. The dark areas... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sundarbans National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Udawalawe National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 3 | Kaziranga National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Wilpattu National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 5 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 6 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 7 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Taroko National Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kalyan-Dombivli | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Mumbai | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Surat | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Nashik | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Thrissur | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Kolkata | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Chennai | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 8 | Vasai-Virar | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Pune | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 10 | Salem | 🇮🇳 India |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Blue Tiger sighting in New Delhi on a given day, based on 29 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 66th most-seen of the 174 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 Tiger in New Delhi on a given day, against under 5% in January–March and October–November, the lowest months. That is one of New Delhi's wettest months, with about 120 mm of rain against almost none in November.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Blue Tiger sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
32nd of 34
Of the 34 cities where we can rate Blue Tiger sightings, New Delhi ranks 32nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Kalyan-Dombivli (India, about 40%), Mumbai (India, about 30%) and Surat (India, about 30%).
Same family: Nymphalidae
The closest relatives of the Blue Tiger that you can see in New Delhi (family Nymphalidae, Brush-footed Butterflies) are Plain Tiger Butterfly (about 40%), Lemon Pansy (about 30%) and Danaid Eggfly (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Blue Tiger is recorded against all the insects logged in New Delhi (29 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.
