Acanthocephala femorata
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The Florida leaf-footed bug (Acanthocephala femorata) is a species of insect. The genus name Acanthocephala means "spiny head" and comes from the pointed tylus at the tip of the head. Acanthocephala femorata is found in the continental United States and Mexico.
This insect is considered a pest, eating and causing damage to citrus and roses. The lower rear legs are wider than the upper legs, with serrations. This is especially pronounced in the male. It has long, slim, curving antennae with distinctive orange tips. The body is reddish brown to nearly black.
They have a number of predators and therefore biological control is generally enough to prevent their populations from going out of control. Many do not make it past the larval stage; parasitic flies often lay their eggs within the developing larvae, paralyzing them. They are also eaten by birds and assassin bugs. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Big Cypress National Preserve | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Florida Leaf-Footed Bug sighting in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 441st most-seen of the 822 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
October
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Florida Leaf-Footed Bug in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November to August, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Florida Leaf-Footed Bug 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 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Florida Leaf-Footed Bug sightings, Great Smoky Mountains National Park ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Everglades National Park (United States, about 10%), Big Cypress National Preserve (United States, about 10%) and Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (United States, about 10%).
Same genus: Acanthocephala
The closest relatives of the Florida Leaf-Footed Bug that you can see in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (genus Acanthocephala, Spine-headed Bugs) are Acanthocephala terminalis (about 20%) and Giant Leaf-Footed Bug (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Florida Leaf-Footed Bug is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (9 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.
