Dryadula phaetusa
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Dryadula is a monotypic genus of the butterfly family Nymphalidae. Its single species, Dryadula phaetusa, known as the banded orange heliconian, banded orange, or orange tiger, is native from Brazil to central Mexico, and in summer can be found rarely as far north as central Florida. Its wingspan ranges from 86 to 89 mm, and it is colored a bright orange with thick black stripes in males and a duller orange with fuzzier black stripes in females.
It feeds primarily on the nectar of flowers and on bird droppings; its caterpillar feeds on passion vines including Passiflora tetrastylis. It is generally found in lowland tropical fields and valleys. This species is unpalatable to birds and belongs to the "orange" Müllerian mimicry complex.
Prior to their mating season, males of this species congregate by the hundreds on patches of moist soil that contain mineral salts, a behavior known as mud-puddling. When they cannot find such deposits, the insects visit various animals to drink salty secretions from their skin and nostrils.
Nat. 10 ed., 1: 478). The... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iberá National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 2 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 3 | Iguazú National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 4 | Iguaçu National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Chirripó National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 6 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 7 | Arenal Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Carara National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | São Luís | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Porto Alegre | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | São Paulo | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Banded Orange Heliconian sighting in São Paulo on a given day, based on 21 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 285th most-seen of the 832 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.
March, May and December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Banded Orange Heliconian in São Paulo on a given day, against under 5% in January–February, April and June–November, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Banded Orange Heliconian sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 4
Of the 4 cities where we can rate Banded Orange Heliconian sightings, São Paulo ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in São Luís (Brazil, about 10%), Porto Alegre (Brazil, about 10%) and San José (Costa Rica, under 5%).
Same family: Nymphalidae
The closest relatives of the Banded Orange Heliconian that you can see in São Paulo (family Nymphalidae, Brush-footed Butterflies) are White Peacock (about 20%), Juno Silverspot (about 20%) and Lansdorf's Crescent (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Banded Orange Heliconian is recorded against all the insects logged in São Paulo (21 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.
