Diplacodes melanopsis
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Diplacodes melanopsis is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae known commonly as the blackfaced percher or black-faced percher. It occurs on the Australian mainland from around Brisbane to the South Australian-Victorian border.
Diplacodes melanopsis is a small dragonfly. Mature males have a black face and front of its body, and a red abdomen with black markings; females are amber and yellow with black markings. The genus name Diplacodes combines Diplax, a genus name derived from the Greek δίς (dis, "twice") and πλάξ (plax, "flat and broad"), with the Greek suffix –ώδης (-ōdēs, "resembling" or "having the nature of"). The name refers to the similarity of the genus to Diplax and Diplacina.
The species name melanopsis is derived from the Greek μελαν- (melan, "black") and ὄψις (opsis, "face" or "appearance"), referring to its brilliant black face. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Black-Faced Percher sighting in Springbrook National Park on a given day, based on 16 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 100th most-seen of the 429 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Black-Faced Percher in Springbrook National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February and April–August, the lowest months.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black-Faced Percher sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Black-Faced Percher sightings, Springbrook National Park ranks 2nd at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Lamington National Park (Australia, about 10%).
Same genus: Diplacodes
The closest relatives of the Black-Faced Percher that you can see in Springbrook National Park (genus Diplacodes, Perchers) are Scarlet Percher (about 20%) and Wandering Percher (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Black-Faced Percher is recorded against all the insects logged in Springbrook National Park (16 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.
