Chlorolestes tessellatus
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
Chlorolestes tessellatus, the forest malachite or mosaic sylph is a species of damselfly in the family Synlestidae. It is endemic to South Africa. This shade-loving species is found at seeps and streams in forests and wooded valleys.
It is 47–57 mm (1.9–2.2 in) long with a wingspan of 55–72 mm (2.2–2.8 in). Males and females are similar; the thorax and abdomen are metallic-green aging to coppery brown. The thorax has contrasting yellow antehumeral stripes; these are more broad than those of the similar Mountain Malachite. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Forest Malachite sighting in Garden Route National Park on a given day, based on 115 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 24th most-seen of the 298 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.
December to April
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Forest Malachite in Garden Route National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June to September, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Forest Malachite sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Garden Route National Park, in our data
Garden Route National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Forest Malachite sightings: about 20% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same genus: Chlorolestes
The closest relatives of the Forest Malachite that you can see in Garden Route National Park (genus Chlorolestes, True Malachites) are White Malachite (about 10%) and Conspicuous Malachite (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Forest Malachite is recorded against all the insects logged in Garden Route National Park (115 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
