Epistrophe nitidicollis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Epistrophe nitidicollis is a European and North American species of hoverfly. External images For terms see Morphology of Diptera Wing length 8-11·25 mm. Face wide, clear yellow, lightly dusted at eye margin. Legs yellow except dark coxae. Thorax blackish and shiny and tergites equally black and yellow. Similar to E. melanostoma but slightly narrower, tergite 5 with black band and scutellum black-haired.
The male genitalia are figured by Hippa (1968). The larva is described and figured by Dusek and Laska(1959). Palaearctic and Nearctic. Fennoscandia South to Iberia. Ireland East through North, Central and South Europe East into Russia then Siberia to the Pacific coast (Kamchatka, Sakhalin Island). North America from Alaska south to California and South Carolina.
Habitat is deciduous forest, scrub and maquis. Arboreal, descending to visit flowers of white umbellifers, Caltha, Cistus, Euphorbia, Prunus, Ranunculus, Rubus, Taraxacum. The flight period is May to June (earlier in southern Europe, later at higher altitudes and northerly latitudes). The larva feeds on aphids. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
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More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Straight-Banded Smoothtail sighting in Paris on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 743rd most-seen of the 916 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.
April
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Straight-Banded Smoothtail in Paris on a given day, against under 5% in May to March, the lowest months.
Among the best
Of the 2 cities where we can rate Straight-Banded Smoothtail sightings, Paris ranks 2nd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in London (United Kingdom, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Straight-Banded Smoothtail is recorded against all the insects logged in Paris (6 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.
