Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee

Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee

Xylocopa tabaniformis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%

6 Verified sightings at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks From 2019 to 2026
39 In all 5 parks
February Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee

Xylocopa tabaniformis, the horsefly-like carpenter bee or mountain carpenter bee is a species of carpenter bee in the family Apidae. It is found in Central America, North America, and South America. It is 12–18 millimetres (15⁄32–23⁄32 in) long and black. Males have yellow hair on the thorax.

Xylocopa tabaniformis tabaniformis Smith, 1854 Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
2 Zion National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
3 Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
4 Cumbres de Monterrey National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
5 Yosemite National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Sacramento 🇺🇸 United States
~50%
2 Salt Lake City 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
3 Mexico City 🇲🇽 México
~20%
4 Toluca 🇲🇽 México
~20%
5 Austin 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
6 San Antonio 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
7 Houston 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
8 San Francisco 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
9 San Luis Potosí 🇲🇽 México
~10%
10 Dallas 🇺🇸 United States
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee sighting in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 137th most-seen of the 161 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.

When is the best time to see a Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks?

February

In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks on a given day, against under 5% in March–April and September–January, the lowest months. That is one of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks's wettest months, with about 140 mm of rain against 10 mm in September.

What time of day is best to see a Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee?

Between 5 and 8 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks the best place to see a Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee?

3rd of 5

Of the 5 parks where we can rate Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee sightings, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca (Mexico, about 20%) and Zion National Park (United States, about 10%).

Where does the Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Horse-Fly Carpenter Bee is recorded against all the insects logged in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (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.

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