Anax speratus
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Anax speratus, the orange emperor, is a species of dragonfly in the family Aeshnidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and possibly Burundi. Its natural habitats are rivers, intermittent rivers, and freshwater springs. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Garden Route National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Orange Emperor sighting in Kruger National Park on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 656th most-seen of the 748 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Orange Emperor in Kruger National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March to January, the lowest months. That is one of Kruger National Park's wettest months, with about 110 mm of rain against almost none in August.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Orange Emperor sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Orange Emperor sightings, Kruger National Park ranks 2nd at under 5%. The best odds are in Garden Route National Park (South Africa, about 10%).
Same genus: Anax
The closest relatives of the Orange Emperor that you can see in Kruger National Park (genus Anax) are Blue Emperor (about 10%) and Vagrant Emperor (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Orange Emperor is recorded against all the insects logged in Kruger National Park (8 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.
