Green-Marbled Sandman

Green-Marbled Sandman

Gomalia elma

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
at Salem

In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%

96 Verified sightings at Salem
34 In all 2 parks From 2019 to 2026
June Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Green-Marbled Sandman

Gomalia elma, also known as the marbled skipper or African marbled skipper, is a species of hesperiid butterfly. It is found in Africa and parts of Asia. Male. Upperside with the ground colour brownish-olive-grey. Forewing with a basal blackish-brown band, and an ante-medial darker band, the latter with its outer margin limited by a black thick line which extends from the sub-costal vein in an outward curve to the sub-median vein, its portion crossing the cell edged outwardly by a white lunular mark which closes the end of the cell, a white spot at the base of the second median interspace and another inwards below^ almost touching it, in the first median interspace, a large square blackish-brown patch on the costa limited outwardly by three sub-apical conjoined white spots, a similar but smaller patch at the apex, a larger similar patch on the middle of the outer margin, and a small narrow one at the hinder angle. Hindwing darker, a white middle band from the sub-costal vein to the abdominal fold, the inner portion of the wing from the band to the base black, containing a white sub-basal spot, a black band narrowing upwards attached to the lower portion of the white... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
2 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Salem 🇮🇳 India
~40%
2 Chennai 🇮🇳 India
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Green-Marbled Sandman in Salem?

Likely

About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Green-Marbled Sandman sighting in Salem on a given day, based on 96 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 8th most-seen of the 99 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Green-Marbled Sandman in Salem?

June and September

In those months about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Green-Marbled Sandman in Salem on a given day, against under 5% in March and April, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Green-Marbled Sandman?

Between noon and 3 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Green-Marbled Sandman sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Salem the best place to see a Green-Marbled Sandman?

Yes

Of the 2 cities where we can rate Green-Marbled Sandman sightings, Salem has the highest daily chance: about 40%. Next come Chennai (India, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Green-Marbled Sandman live in Salem?

Same family: Hesperiidae

The closest relatives of the Green-Marbled Sandman that you can see in Salem (family Hesperiidae, Skippers) are Common Banded Awl (about 30%), Common Grass-Dart (about 20%) and Formosan Swift (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Green-Marbled Sandman sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Green-Marbled Sandman is recorded against all the insects logged in Salem (96 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.

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