Papilio nireus
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Papilio nireus, the green-banded swallowtail, narrow-banded blue swallowtail, or African blue-banded swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in Sub-Saharan Africa. The wingspan is 75–90 millimetres (3.0–3.5 in) in males and 85–95 mm (3.3–3.7 in) in females.
Forewing above at most with two blue submarginal spots in cellules 7 and 8; rarely in the female with several yellow ones; the blue (male) or greenish (female) median band is 2–7 mm broad at the hindmargin of the forewing and 4–12 mm in the middle of the hindwing, and is only a little widened posteriorly; the spot in cellule 2 of the hindwing does not completely cover the base of the cellule and the narrow spot in cellule lc does not reach the cell; forewing beneath almost always entirely without submarginal spots. [Nominate] Median band of the forewing above well developed, the spots of cellules 2—4 obliquely cut off distally; the discal spot in cellule 2 of the hindwing is very long and produced farther towards the anal angle than the spot in cellule 1 c. Sierra Leone to Angola and Uganda. — lyaeus Dbl. The median band narrower, but complete; the spot in cellule 2 of the hindwing is... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lake Mburo National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 2 | Akagera National Park | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 3 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 4 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Kibale National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 6 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 7 | Bwindi Impenetrable National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 8 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Narrow Green-Banded Swallowtail sighting in Pretoria on a given day, based on 16 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 95th most-seen of the 274 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.
July–October and December–April
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Narrow Green-Banded Swallowtail in Pretoria on a given day, against under 5% in May–June and November, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Narrow Green-Banded Swallowtail sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 6
Of the 6 cities where we can rate Narrow Green-Banded Swallowtail sightings, Pretoria ranks 5th at about 10%. The best odds are in Nairobi (Kenya, about 20%), Lusaka (Zambia, about 20%) and Kampala (Uganda, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Narrow Green-Banded Swallowtail is recorded against all the insects logged in Pretoria (16 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.
