Phimenes flavopictus
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Phimenes flavopictus is a species of potter wasp found in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, China, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. Females build rounded mud chambers, or pots, for their eggs which are provisioned with caterpillars.
Considerable variation in the distribution and patterns of yellow and black are seen across their range, particularly in South East Asia. In South Asia, there are two other species that are in the same genus. In P. flavopictus, the second gastral tergite has two yellow spots at the base on the black background forming a broken band. Towards the apex the bands are more narrowly interrupted. A related species P. andamanicum is found on the Andamans that has the thorax (mesosoma) nearly all black while P. nicobaricum has the second tergite all yellow. The species was described by Blanchard under the genus Eumenes in 1849 although many authors have assumed that the publication was made in 1845. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gunung Leuser National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 2 | Taroko National Park | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Phimenes flavopictus sighting in Taipei on a given day, based on 81 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 147th most-seen of the 765 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April to October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Phimenes flavopictus in Taipei on a given day, against under 5% in November to March, the lowest months.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Phimenes flavopictus sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
10th of 18
Of the 18 cities where we can rate Phimenes flavopictus sightings, Taipei ranks 10th at about 10%. The best odds are in Bengaluru (India, about 20%), Nashik (India, about 10%) and Tuen Mun (China, about 10%).
Same family: Eumenidae
The closest relatives of the Phimenes flavopictus that you can see in Taipei (family Eumenidae) are Delta pyriforme (about 10%), Giant Brown Paper Wasp (about 10%) and Rothney's Paper Wasp (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Phimenes flavopictus is recorded against all the insects logged in Taipei (81 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.
