Zygaena ephialtes
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Zygaena ephialtes is day-flying species of burnet moth found in Europe. It is typically found in xeric habitats, and populations have recently decreased. It also exhibits Müllerian mimicry with other species, like Amata phegea.
Z. ephialtes typically fly during the day. Adult butterfly flight is often characterized as slow. As characteristic of Zygaenidae moths, they have prominent spots on their wings, which alerts predators that they contain toxins.
Z. ephialtes L. (= falcatae Boisd.) (5 i, k). Forewing with 6 spots; the basal pair red, the others white; hindwing with a white dot. Abdomen with red belt. From South Germany and Switzerland, eastwards to Greece and South Siberia.[doubtful (misident.)
] — medusa Pall. [ now Z. ephialtes ssp. medusa Pallas, 1771] (5 k) is the form without the 6. spot: being especially frequent in the eastern districts of the area. — In the west of the area, especially in Northern Italy, South Germany, Austria, and also in some of the Balcan States, there occur two forms which are marked like ephialtes ssp. medusa, but have the 2 basal spots of the forewing and the abdominal belt deep yellow instead... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 2 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Variable Burnet sighting in Prague on a given day, based on 13 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 406th most-seen of the 724 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.
July
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Variable Burnet in Prague on a given day, against under 5% in August to June, the lowest months. That is one of Prague's wettest months, with about 80 mm of rain against 30 mm in February.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Variable Burnet sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 3 cities where we can rate Variable Burnet sightings, Prague ranks 2nd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Warsaw (Poland, under 5%).
Same genus: Zygaena
The closest relatives of the Variable Burnet that you can see in Prague (genus Zygaena) are Six-Spot Burnet (about 10%), Crepuscular Burnet (about 10%) and Slender Scotch Burnet (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Variable Burnet is recorded against all the insects logged in Prague (13 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.
