Libanasidus vittatus
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The Parktown prawn, African king cricket or tusked king cricket (Libanasidus vittatus) is a species of king cricket endemic to Southern Africa. It is unrelated to prawns, Libanasidus being insects in the order Orthoptera – crickets, locusts and similar insects. The king crickets are not true crickets either: they belong to the family Anostostomatidae, whereas true crickets are in the Gryllidae. The insect gets its English name from the suburb of Parktown in Johannesburg, South Africa, where they are common. It is found throughout Namibia, and in the southern savanna and semi-arid regions of Angola. The Parktown prawn is related to the New Zealand tree wētā, which is also in the family Anostostomatidae.
The Parktown prawn is held in low regard by many householders, but gardeners value them for controlling garden snail populations and attracting the hadeda ibis. The animal is omnivorous, with a diet that includes snails, other invertebrates, and vegetable matter. In urban environments, they will readily take food made available by suburban dwellers, including pet food and their droppings.
Libanasidus vittatus was unknown within Johannesburg before the 1960s... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Parktown Prawn sighting in Pretoria on a given day, based on 19 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 69th most-seen of the 274 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
October and December
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Parktown Prawn in Pretoria on a given day, against under 5% in May and July–September, the lowest months. Those are among Pretoria's wettest months, with about 90 mm of rain a month against almost none in July.
Yes
Of the 2 cities where we can rate Parktown Prawn sightings, Pretoria has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Johannesburg (South Africa, about 10%).
Same order: Orthoptera
The closest relatives of the Parktown Prawn that you can see in Pretoria (order Orthoptera, Grasshoppers, Crickets, and Katydids) are Green Milkweed Locust (about 20%), Garden Locust (about 20%) and Elegant Grasshopper (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Parktown Prawn is recorded against all the insects logged in Pretoria (19 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.
