Spotted Sailer

Spotted Sailer

Neptis saclava

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at iSimangaliso Wetland Park

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%

9 Verified sightings at iSimangaliso Wetland Park From 2019 to 2026
65 In all 4 parks
April Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Spotted Sailer

Neptis saclava, the spotted sailer, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is native to Madagascar and to large areas of sub-Saharan Africa. Its wingspan is 40–45 mm in males and 45–48 mm in females The hindwing beneath at the base with whitish ground-colour and numerous irregular light red-brown spots, more or less joined together; cell of the forewing above unicolorous or with small white dots, beneath white with irregular light red-brown markings; discal spot 4 of the forewing is absent or very small, dot-like; the hindmarginal spot of the forewing is. large and touches the spot in cellule 2 or is only narrowly separated from it; the median band of the hindwing is 4—-7 mm. in breadth. Madagascar

Images BOLD Adults are on the wing year round with a peak from December to May. The larvae feed on Acalypha glabrata, Combretum bracteosum, Ricinus communis, Australina, and Pilea. Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~30%
2 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
3 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
4 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Nairobi 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
2 Durban 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
3 Lusaka 🇿🇲 Zambia
~10%
4 Johannesburg 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Spotted Sailer in iSimangaliso Wetland Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted Sailer sighting in iSimangaliso Wetland Park on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 203rd most-seen of the 316 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.

When is the best time to see a Spotted Sailer in iSimangaliso Wetland Park?

February–April and June–August

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted Sailer in iSimangaliso Wetland Park on a given day, against under 5% in May and September–January, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Spotted Sailer?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Spotted Sailer sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is iSimangaliso Wetland Park the best place to see a Spotted Sailer?

3rd of 4

Of the 4 parks where we can rate Spotted Sailer sightings, iSimangaliso Wetland Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 30%) and Kruger National Park (South Africa, about 10%).

Where does the Spotted Sailer sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Spotted Sailer is recorded against all the insects logged in iSimangaliso Wetland 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.

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