Spialia spio
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Spialia spio, the mountain sandman or Spio grizzled skipper, is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found in tropical Africa and south-western Arabia. It is found in eastern South Africa. The wingspan is 22–29 mm for males and 28–31 mm for females. Adults are on wing year-round in warmer areas. In South Africa it is more common in warmer months. In cooler areas adults are on wing from August to April.
The larvae feed on Lavatera arborea, Hibiscus (including Hibiscus aethiopicus, Hibiscus gossypinus and Hibiscus pusillus), Sida, Pavonia (including Pavonia burchellii, Pavonia macrophylla and Pavonia columella), Triumfetta and Hermannia species (including Hermannia diffusa, Hermannia incana, Hermannia comosa, Hermannia coccocarpa, Hermannia candicans, Hermannia pilosula, Hermannia pallius, Hermannia pollens and Hermannia cuneifolia). Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 2 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White-Spot Sandman sighting in Garden Route National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 261st most-seen of the 298 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–March, July and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a White-Spot Sandman in Garden Route National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April–June, August–October and December–January, the lowest months.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-Spot Sandman 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 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate White-Spot Sandman sightings, Garden Route National Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 30%), Addo Elephant National Park (South Africa, about 10%) and Kruger National Park (South Africa, about 10%).
Same family: Hesperiidae
The closest relatives of the White-Spot Sandman that you can see in Garden Route National Park (family Hesperiidae, Skippers) are Goldspotted Sylph (about 10%) and Pale Small-Branded Swift (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-Spot Sandman is recorded against all the insects logged in Garden Route National Park (5 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.
