Speyeria cybele
In 3 days ~70% in a week ~90%
The great spangled fritillary (Speyeria cybele) is a North American butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. Its wingspan ranges from 62 to 88 mm (2.4 to 3.5 in). It is characterized by its orange colour above with five black dashes near forewing base and several irregular black dashes at the base of the hindwing. In addition, two rows of black crescents run along the edges of the wings. Below, the forewing is yellowish orange with black marks similar to the upperside, with a few silver spots on the tip of the wing. The hindwing is reddish brown with silver spots on the base and middle of the wing. A broad yellow band and silver triangles are the most notable qualities on the wing, next to the brown margin. Females tend to be darker than males and individuals from the western reaches of this species range tend to be brighter orange. Similar species include the Aphrodite fritillary (Speyeria aphrodite), the Atlantis fritillary (Speyeria atlantis) and the northwestern fritillary (Speyeria hesperis). It is distinguished from the Aphrodite and Atlantis fritillaries by a wide light submarginal band on the hindwing and instead of black spots, black dashes form on the margins... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Elk Island National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 4 | Acadia National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Riding Mountain National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edmonton | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Minneapolis [Saint Paul] | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Toronto | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Calgary | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 6 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Montreal | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 8 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Great Spangled Fritillary sighting in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 632 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 9th most-seen of the 822 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May–June and September
In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Great Spangled Fritillary in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November to February, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Great Spangled Fritillary sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Great Spangled Fritillary sightings, Great Smoky Mountains National Park ranks 2nd at about 30%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Shenandoah National Park (United States, about 30%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Great Spangled Fritillary is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (632 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.
