Orthetrum chrysostigma
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
Orthetrum chrysostigma, the epaulet skimmer, is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae. It is found in Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Israel, Kenya, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and possibly Burundi as well as Canary Islands, and Portugal. It was recorded in the Maltese Islands in 2010.
Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, dry savanna, moist savanna, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tropical moist shrubland, rivers, intermittent rivers, shrub-dominated wetlands, swamps, freshwater lakes, intermittent freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, intermittent freshwater marshes, and freshwater springs. The adults prey on various flying insects. The bodies of adult males are blue, and those of young and females are yellow and brown. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report an Epaulet Skimmer sighting in Valencia, Spain on a given day, based on 41 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 36th most-seen of the 147 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 an Epaulet Skimmer in Valencia, Spain on a given day, against under 5% in December to April, the lowest months. That is one of Valencia, Spain's wettest months, with about 50 mm of rain against 10 mm in July.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Epaulet Skimmer 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 8 cities where we can rate Epaulet Skimmer sightings, Valencia, Spain ranks 5th at about 20%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Tel Aviv (Israel, about 20%), Antalya (Turkey, about 20%) and Jerusalem (Israel, about 20%).
Same family: Libellulidae
The closest relatives of the Epaulet Skimmer that you can see in Valencia, Spain (family Libellulidae, Skimmers) are Nomad (about 30%), Violet Dropwing (about 10%) and Orange-Winged Dropwing (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Epaulet Skimmer is recorded against all the insects logged in Valencia, Spain (41 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.
