Alcon Large Blue

Alcon Large Blue

Maculinea alcon

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible
at Mercantour National Park

In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%

21 Verified sightings at Mercantour National Park From 2019 to 2026
40 In all 3 parks
June Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Alcon Large Blue

Phengaris alcon, the Alcon blue or Alcon large blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae and is found in Europe and across the Palearctic to Siberia and Mongolia. L. alcon Schiff. (= areas Esp., euphemus Godt.) (83 a). Large, the male above deep blue, but without brilliant gloss. The female black-brown, dusted with dark blue in the basal area. The dark violet-grey underside has numerous ocelli. L. alcon is easily distinguished from the following species (coeligena [L. coeligena Oberth. China], euphemus, arcas, arion, arionides...) by the male bearing on the blue disc of the forewing no other black spots but the discocellular lunule. Central Europe and North Asia, from the coast of the North Sea (Hamburg, Bremen, Belgium) to the Mediterranean, and from France to the Altai, Dauria and Tibet, ab. nigra Wheel, has the males strongly darkened, the females being quite black above. In ab. cecinae Hormuz. the ocelli of the underside are absent or strongly reduced. In ab. pallidior Schultz the margin is grey instead of black. – marginepunctata Gillm. has a row of black dots before the margin, almost parallel with it; found by Hafner at Loitsch and other places... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
2 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
3 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an Alcon Large Blue in Mercantour National Park?

Possible

About 20% of wildlife watchers report an Alcon Large Blue sighting in Mercantour National Park on a given day, based on 21 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 119th most-seen of the 412 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see an Alcon Large Blue in Mercantour National Park?

June

In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report an Alcon Large Blue in Mercantour National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to May, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see an Alcon Large Blue?

Between 10 am and 1 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Alcon Large Blue sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Mercantour National Park the best place to see an Alcon Large Blue?

Yes

Of the 3 parks where we can rate Alcon Large Blue sightings, Mercantour National Park has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Cévennes National Park (France, about 10%) and Wadden Sea National Park (Germany, under 5%).

Where does the Alcon Large Blue sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Alcon Large Blue is recorded against all the insects logged in Mercantour National Park (21 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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