Papilio indra
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~30%
Papilio indra, the Indra swallowtail, short-tailed black swallowtail, or cliff swallowtail, is a western North American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. The Indra swallowtail is a black butterfly with minimal blue and whitish markings, similar in coloration to the black swallowtail or the short-tailed swallowtail. Likewise, the species has a very short tail, and dark blue crescents on the topside of the hindwing.
P. indra can be found in a variety of ecosystems, ranging from sea level in some areas to several thousand feet in elevation elsewhere. They can be found near many cities and other human settlements, as well as in extremely isolated, pristine forested regions, remote high deserts, prairies, or in montane habitats.
Geographically, P. indra is found in the western half of North America, from extreme southern British Columbia, south through Washington, Oregon and California (extending to northern Baja California, Mexico). It is also found around the Rockies, north from Idaho and western Montana through Wyoming, Nevada, Utah and Colorado, and south to Arizona and New Mexico. Sightings have also occurred as far east as western... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Indra Swallowtail sighting in Grand Canyon National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 124th most-seen of the 143 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May to July
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Indra Swallowtail in Grand Canyon National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to April, the lowest months. Those are among Grand Canyon National Park's driest months, with about 10 mm of rain a month against 40 mm in March.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Indra Swallowtail sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Indra Swallowtail sightings, Grand Canyon National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Yosemite National Park (United States, about 10%).
Same genus: Papilio
The closest relatives of the Indra Swallowtail that you can see in Grand Canyon National Park (genus Papilio, Common Swallowtails) are Two-Tailed Swallowtail (about 20%), Black Swallowtail (about 10%) and Western Tiger Swallowtail (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Indra Swallowtail is recorded against all the insects logged in Grand Canyon 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.
