Brachypalpus alopex
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Brachypalpus alopex, the bumblebee catkin fly, is an uncommon species of syrphid fly first officially described by Osten Sacken in 1877. Hoverflies get their names from the ability to remain nearly motionless while in flight. The adults are also known as flower flies, for they are commonly found around and on flowers from which they get both energy-giving nectar and protein-rich pollen. The larvae are of the rat-tailed type feeding on decaying sap under tree bark. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Olympic National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Bumblebee Catkin Fly sighting in Olympic National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 182nd most-seen of the 207 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.
March
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Bumblebee Catkin Fly in Olympic National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May to February, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Bumblebee Catkin Fly sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Olympic National Park, in our data
Olympic National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Bumblebee Catkin Fly sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Syrphidae
The closest relatives of the Bumblebee Catkin Fly that you can see in Olympic National Park (family Syrphidae, Hover Flies) are Common Drone Fly (about 10%), Western Pond Fly (about 10%) and Black-Margined Flower Fly (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Bumblebee Catkin Fly is recorded against all the insects logged in Olympic National Park (5 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.
