Pied Paddy Skimmer

Pied Paddy Skimmer

Neurothemis tullia

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
at Sinharaja Forest Reserve

In 3 days ~70% in a week >90%

38 Verified sightings at Sinharaja Forest Reserve From 2019 to 2026
123 In all 8 parks
November Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Pied Paddy Skimmer

Neurothemis tullia, the pied paddy skimmer, is a species of dragonfly found in south and south-east Asia. It appears in Bangladesh, China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia), Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Cambodia and Viet Nam.

It is a black dragonfly with a pale yellow mid-dorsal carina of thorax. Wings are hyaline for apical half and opaque steely blue-black for basal half which is bordered by a milky white patch towards the tip. Females differ remarkably from the males both in body-colouring and markings and in marking of the wings. Its body is greenish yellow with a bright yellow mid-dorsal carina of thorax. Base of wings are amber yellow followed by a blackish brown patch. Apices of all wings are broadly opaque blackish brown and the remaining halves are pale yellow.

It breeds in marshes, well vegetated ponds, lakes and rice fields. It perches very close to ground and its flight is very weak. List of odonates of Sri Lanka List of odonates of India List of odonata of Kerala Pied Parasol (Neurothemis tullia tullia) – Kalahe, Galle, Sri Lanka

Md Rawi, Che Salmah (1996) Some... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Sundarbans National Park 🇮🇳 India
~40%
2 Sinharaja Forest Reserve 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~40%
3 Minneriya National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~30%
4 Wilpattu National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~30%
5 Periyar National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
6 Cat Tien National Park 🇻🇳 Vietnam
~20%
7 Chitwan National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~20%
8 Khao Yai National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Colachel 🇮🇳 India
~50%
2 Dhaka 🇧🇩 Bangladesh
~40%
3 Thrissur 🇮🇳 India
~40%
4 Kozhikode 🇮🇳 India
~40%
5 Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~40%
6 Kochi 🇮🇳 India
~40%
7 Kolkata 🇮🇳 India
~30%
8 Thiruvananthapuram 🇮🇳 India
~30%
9 Ponnani 🇮🇳 India
~30%
10 Kollam 🇮🇳 India
~30%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Pied Paddy Skimmer in Sinharaja Forest Reserve?

Likely

About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Pied Paddy Skimmer sighting in Sinharaja Forest Reserve on a given day, based on 38 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 7th most-seen of the 117 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Pied Paddy Skimmer in Sinharaja Forest Reserve?

February–March, June, August and November–December

In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Pied Paddy Skimmer in Sinharaja Forest Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in October, the lowest month.

What time of day is best to see a Pied Paddy Skimmer?

Between 10 am and 1 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pied Paddy Skimmer 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 Sinharaja Forest Reserve the best place to see a Pied Paddy Skimmer?

Among the best

Of the 8 parks where we can rate Pied Paddy Skimmer sightings, Sinharaja Forest Reserve ranks 2nd at about 40%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Sundarbans National Park (India, about 40%).

Which relatives of the Pied Paddy Skimmer live in Sinharaja Forest Reserve?

Same family: Libellulidae

The closest relatives of the Pied Paddy Skimmer that you can see in Sinharaja Forest Reserve (family Libellulidae, Skimmers) are Slender Blue Skimmer (about 30%), Brown-Backed Red Marsh Hawk (about 30%) and Indigo Dropwing (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Pied Paddy Skimmer sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Pied Paddy Skimmer is recorded against all the insects logged in Sinharaja Forest Reserve (38 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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