Thyreus caeruleopunctatus
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The chequered cuckoo bee (Thyreus caeruleopunctatus) is a species of bee native to Australia and New Guinea. A member of the family Apidae, it was described by Émile Blanchard in 1840. It is mostly black, with pale blue markings on the abdomen, thorax, legs and head, and smoky-coloured wings. This species is kleptoparasitic on species of the Amegilla genus, including Amegilla pulchra.
The chequered cuckoo bee was first described by French zoologist and entomologist Émile Blanchard, who named it Crocisa caeruleopunctata in 1840. It has also been known as Crocisa australensis and Crocisa lamprosoma. In the late 1950s to early 1960s, these names were synonymized by Dutch entomologist Maurits Lieftinck, who undertook a broad revision of the genus, and gave this species the current name of Thyreus caeruleopunctatus. The specific name (caeruleopunctatus) means "sky-blue spotted" in Latin.
This bee is stocky and approximately 10 to 12 millimetres in length. It is mostly black, with four rows of pale blue hair spots running lengthwise on top of the abdomen, and two rows of pale blue hair spots underneath. As in other bees of this genus, the thorax has a flat... Wikipedia →
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More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Chequered Cuckoo Bee sighting in Sydney on a given day, based on 17 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 360th most-seen of the 742 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.
February
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Chequered Cuckoo Bee in Sydney on a given day, against under 5% in March to January, the lowest months. That is one of Sydney's wettest months, with about 130 mm of rain against 45 mm in September.
2nd of 3
Of the 3 cities where we can rate Chequered Cuckoo Bee sightings, Sydney ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in Melbourne (Australia, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Chequered Cuckoo Bee is recorded against all the insects logged in Sydney (17 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.
