Libellula saturata
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The flame skimmer or firecracker skimmer (Libellula saturata) is a common dragonfly of the family Libellulidae, native to western North America. Male flame skimmers are known for their entirely red or dark orange body, this includes eyes, legs, and even wing veins. Females are usually a medium or darker brown with some thin, yellow markings. This particular type of skimmer varies in size but is generally measured somewhere between 2 and 3 inches (5.1 and 7.6 cm) long. The naiads are known for being rather large and chubby-looking due to their rounded abdomen. They are covered with hair but, unlike most young dragonflies, they lack hooks or spines.
Due to its choice habitat of warm ponds, streams, or hot springs, flame skimmers are found mainly in the southwestern part of the United States. They also make their homes in public gardens or backyards. An immature flame skimmer (nymph) feeds mainly on aquatic insects. Its diet consists of mosquito larvae, aquatic fly larvae, mayfly larvae, freshwater shrimp, small fish, and tadpoles. The nymphs, which live in the mud at the bottom of warm streams or ponds, catch their prey by waiting... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Death Valley National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Zion National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Big Bend National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Guadalupe Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 12 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Portland | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Phoenix | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Salt Lake City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Monterrey | 🇲🇽 México |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Flame Skimmer sighting in Saguaro National Park on a given day, based on 129 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 17th most-seen of the 354 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.
June and October
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Flame Skimmer in Saguaro National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January and February, the lowest months. Those are among Saguaro National Park's driest months, with about 15 mm of rain a month against 55 mm in July.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Flame Skimmer sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 12
Of the 12 parks where we can rate Flame Skimmer sightings, Saguaro National Park ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Death Valley National Park (United States, about 30%) and Yellowstone National Park (United States, about 30%).
Same family: Libellulidae
The closest relatives of the Flame Skimmer that you can see in Saguaro National Park (family Libellulidae, Skimmers) are Variegated Meadowhawk (about 20%), Filigree Skimmer (about 10%) and Roseate Skimmer (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Flame Skimmer is recorded against all the insects logged in Saguaro National Park (129 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.
