Phocides batabano
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
Phocides batabano, including the mangrove skipper, is a skipper in the family Hesperiidae. It is found in North America, namely in the United States from coast to coast in peninsular Florida and the Florida Keys, Cuba and adjacent regions like the Bahamas and Cayman Island.
The wingspan is 48–70 mm. Adults are on the wing from November to August in southern Florida. The larvae feed on Rhizophora mangle species. Adults feed on nectar of various plants, including mangrove, shepherd's needle, citrus, and bougainvillaea flowers.
Strays may be found up to coastal South Carolina. Phocides pigmalion batabano (Cuba, Cayman) Phocides pigmalion batabanoides (Bahamas) Phocides pigmalion okeechobee (Florida) Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Miami | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Mangrove Skipper sighting in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 110th most-seen of the 189 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.
March–April, August–September and December–January
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Mangrove Skipper in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge on a given day, against under 5% in February, May–July and October–November, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mangrove Skipper 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 Mangrove Skipper sightings, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Everglades National Park (United States, about 20%).
Same family: Hesperiidae
The closest relatives of the Mangrove Skipper that you can see in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (family Hesperiidae, Skippers) are Salt Marsh Skipper (about 30%), Long-Tailed Skipper (about 20%) and Whirlabout (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mangrove Skipper is recorded against all the insects logged in Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (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.
