Polybia emaciata
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Polybia emaciata is a Neotropical swarm founding wasp that is mainly found in South America. This eusocial species has a unique colony structure in which multiple queens are present. Workers and queens are not morphologically distinct, but the high amount of relatedness maintained in the colony ensures that workers police each other. Polybia emaciata relies on a diet of liquid nectars which is supplemented with prey insects, particularly flies. It is well known for being one of only three wasp species in the genus Polybia that uses mud as the primary material for building its nest. Polybia emaciata is one of the least aggressive wasp species in the genus Polybia, and is known for its distinctive defensive behavior.
Polybia emaciata is part of the family Vespidae and the genus Polybia. It is one of 56 other species in the genus. This species is similar in appearance to many other species in the genus; however, it has a distinctive method of nest making. Unlike most other Polybia species, P. emaciata uses mud to build its nest instead of using plant resources. Other than its use of mud in nest making, it is similar in appearance to many other species in the... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soberanía National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valencia | 🇻🇪 Venezuela |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Polybia emaciata sighting in Soberanía National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 208th most-seen of the 253 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Polybia emaciata in Soberanía National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May, July and October–March, the lowest months. That is one of Soberanía National Park's wettest months, with about 310 mm of rain against 25 mm in February.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Polybia emaciata sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Soberanía National Park, in our data
Soberanía National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Polybia emaciata sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same genus: Polybia
The closest relatives of the Polybia emaciata that you can see in Soberanía National Park (genus Polybia, Long-waisted Honey Wasps) are Yellow-Banded Polybia Wasp (about 10%) and Ferocious Polybia Wasp (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Polybia emaciata is recorded against all the insects logged in Soberanía 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.
