Rhyothemis variegata
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
Rhyothemis variegata, known as the common picture wing, variegated flutterer, yellow-striped flutterer or yellow-barred flutterer, is a species of dragonfly of the family Libellulidae, found in South Asia, Indochina, southern China, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Australia and islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Rhyothemis variegata is a medium-sized dark bodied dragonfly with colorful wings tinted with pale yellow. There are a few black spots on the apices and nodes of the fore-wings. There is a large patch in the base of the hind-wings, marked with black and golden yellow. In females, the apical half of the fore-wings are transparent; basal half tinted with golden-yellow with black marks. The apical ends of the hind-wings are transparent; rest of wings marked with golden-yellow and black.
It breeds in marshes, ponds and paddy fields. They appear to have weak flight and can easily be mistaken for butterflies. The species Rhyothemis variegata was first described in 1763 in Centuria insectorum rariorum, a work associated with Carl Linnaeus.
The authorship of this publication may be uncertain, as it was produced in connection with Linnaeus’ student... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 2 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 3 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 4 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 5 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 6 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 7 | Sepilok | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 8 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Common Picture Wing sighting in Minneriya National Park on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 10th most-seen of the 44 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March–May and August–October
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Common Picture Wing in Minneriya National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June and December–January, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Picture Wing sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 10
Of the 10 parks where we can rate Common Picture Wing sightings, Minneriya National Park ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary (Malaysia, about 30%) and Cuc Phuong National Park (Vietnam, about 30%).
Same family: Libellulidae
The closest relatives of the Common Picture Wing that you can see in Minneriya National Park (family Libellulidae, Skimmers) are Pied Paddy Skimmer (about 30%), Crimson Marsh Glider (about 20%) and Chalky Percher (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Picture Wing is recorded against all the insects logged in Minneriya National Park (15 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.
