Eristalis anthophorina
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Eristalis anthophorina, the orange-spotted drone fly, is a species of syrphid fly with a Holarctic distribution. It is a common fly in wetlands, including bogs, fens, and woodland pools. In North America, it occurs throughout much of Canada and primarily in the northern parts of the United States. It may be introduced in North America.
This species is Holarctic in distribution. It is widely distributed worldwide in northern North American and Europe. It is a common in wetlands, including bogs, fens, and woodland pools. In North America, it occurs throughout much of Canada and primarily in the northern parts of the United States. It may be introduced in North America.
external map This fly can easily be confused with bumblebees. It reaches around 15 mm (0.6 in) in length. Head The face is reddish-yellow pollinose, with white pilose sides and a shining black median stripe and with black broadly on the cheeks (gena). The antennae are black with the arista reddish and pubescent near the base. The eyes are completely pilose, holoptic in the male.
Thorax The thorax is black with long yellow hairs. The scutellum is wholly yellow, densely covered with... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kluane National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 3 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Orange-Spotted Drone Fly sighting in Great Bear Rainforest on a given day, based on 12 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 111th most-seen of the 235 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.
May to August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Orange-Spotted Drone Fly in Great Bear Rainforest on a given day, against under 5% in September to April, the lowest months. Those are among Great Bear Rainforest's driest months, with about 140 mm of rain a month against 480 mm in November.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Orange-Spotted Drone Fly sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Orange-Spotted Drone Fly sightings, Great Bear Rainforest ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Kluane National Park (Canada, about 20%) and Pacific Rim National Park Reserve (Canada, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Orange-Spotted Drone Fly is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Bear Rainforest (12 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.
