Catacroptera cloanthe
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
Catacroptera is a monotypic butterfly genus of the subfamily Nymphalinae in the family Nymphalidae found in sub-Saharan Africa. The habitat consists of grassland and savanna. Adults are on wing year round, but from September to April in cooler areas.
The larvae feed on Justicia protracta, Barleria stuhlmanni, Ruellia cordata, Asystasia gangetica, Barleria opaca, Ruellia togoensis, Chaetacanthus setiger, Asclepias and Phaulopsis species. C. c. subsp. cloanthe – East and southern Africa: Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Eswatini, South Africa (Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape)
Bode, J. (2012), Pirate & Joker Sap Sucking, feeding on sap of Ziziphus mucronata tree, YouTube video Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Golden Gate Highlands National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Pirate sighting in Nairobi National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 20th most-seen of the 34 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Pirate in Nairobi National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May, July–September and November–February, the lowest months. That is one of Nairobi National Park's wettest months, with about 180 mm of rain against 15 mm in July.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pirate 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 Pirate sightings, Nairobi National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Golden Gate Highlands National Park (South Africa, about 40%).
Same family: Nymphalidae
The closest relatives of the Pirate that you can see in Nairobi National Park (family Nymphalidae, Brush-footed Butterflies) are Plain Tiger Butterfly (about 30%), Little Pansy (about 30%) and Yellow Pansy (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pirate is recorded against all the insects logged in Nairobi National Park (6 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.
