Leptoglossus zonatus
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
Leptoglossus zonatus is a species of leaf-footed bug, a type of true bugs. It is found throughout much of South America, Central America, Mexico, and the southwestern United States. The bug is two centimeters in length, gray in color, with a zigzagging whitish band across its back and two distinctive yellowish spots on its anterior pronotum, the identifying characteristic for the species.
This leaf-footed bug is one of the two major pests of physic nut plants in Nicaragua. In Honduras, where the bug is known commonly as chinche patona (large-legged bug), it is a minor garden pest. It is a pest of many crops in Brazil and it may transmit the plant pathogen Herpetomonas macgheei, a trypanosomatid protozoan. It breeds in pomegranate and desert willow trees, and the gregarious bright orange nymphs aggregate there. It is a serious pest of satsuma oranges in Louisiana, causing damage by feeding and by transmitting the pathogenic yeast Nematospora coryli.
Biological pest control agents found to be effective against this insect include the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cabo Pulmo National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Quito | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 3 | Torreón | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 4 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | Houston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Guatemala City | 🇬🇹 Guatemala | |
| 8 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Medellín | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Leptoglossus zonatus sighting in Quito on a given day, based on 24 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 25th most-seen of the 83 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Leptoglossus zonatus in Quito on a given day, against under 5% in May, the lowest month. That is one of Quito's driest months, with about 40 mm of rain against 180 mm in April.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Leptoglossus zonatus sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 22 cities where we can rate Leptoglossus zonatus sightings, Quito ranks 2nd at about 20%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Sacramento (United States, about 20%).
Same order: Hemiptera
The closest relatives of the Leptoglossus zonatus that you can see in Quito (order Hemiptera, True Bugs, Hoppers, Aphids, and allies) are Milkweed Assassin Bug (about 10%), Pellaea stictica (about 10%) and Onega bracteata (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Leptoglossus zonatus is recorded against all the insects logged in Quito (24 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.
