Mutillidae (Velvet Ants) — Wallace's Line

Species in this group

Dasymutilla occidentalis

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Dasymutilla vestita

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Mutilla europaea

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Mutilla marginata

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Dasymutilla pulchra

Daily sighting probability ~20% · Possible

Dasymutilla gloriosa

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Hoplognathoca costarricensis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Dasymutilla magnifica

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Tropidotilla litoralis

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Dasymutilla satanas

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Dasymutilla foxi

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck

Sphaeropthalma marpesia

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Dasymutilla pseudopappus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Traumatomutilla inermis

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Smicromyrme rufipes

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

See all 15 species Show fewer

Daily sighting probability by month

Probability-weighted average across the group's species

<5%

Jan

<5%

Feb

<5%

Mar

<5%

Apr

~10%

May

~10%

Jun

~10%

Jul

~10%

Aug

~10%

Sep

~10%

Oct

~10%

Nov

~10%

Dec

When they're spotted

When the group's species are recorded (aggregated)

Where to see Velvet Ants

Warmer areas are where this group is recorded most often. Our parks Our cities

Parks Ranked

#	Park	Country	Species	Daily sighting probability
1	Tatra National Park	🇸🇰 Slovakia	2 of 15	~30%
	Large Velvet Ant			~20%
	Mutilla marginata			~20%
2	Big Bend National Park	🇺🇸 United States	4 of 15	~30%
	Thistledown Velvet Ant			~10%
	Dasymutilla vestita			~10%
	Sphaeropthalma marpesia			<5%
	Dasymutilla pseudopappus			<5%
3	Grand Canyon National Park	🇺🇸 United States	4 of 15	~30%
	Dasymutilla vestita			~10%
	Thistledown Velvet Ant			~10%
	Dasymutilla satanas			~10%
	Magnificent Velvet Ant			~10%
4	Zion National Park	🇺🇸 United States	2 of 15	~30%
	Dasymutilla vestita			~20%
	Magnificent Velvet Ant			~10%
5	Congaree National Park	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~20%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~20%
6	Saguaro National Park	🇺🇸 United States	3 of 15	~20%
	Magnificent Velvet Ant			~10%
	Dasymutilla foxi			~10%
	Thistledown Velvet Ant			<5%
7	Joshua Tree National Park	🇺🇸 United States	2 of 15	~20%
	Magnificent Velvet Ant			~10%
	Thistledown Velvet Ant			~10%
8	Tikal National Park	🇬🇹 Guatemala	1 of 15	~20%
	Dasymutilla pulchra			~20%
9	Vanoise National Park	🇫🇷 France	1 of 15	~20%
	Large Velvet Ant			~20%
10	Mercantour National Park	🇫🇷 France	1 of 15	~10%
	Large Velvet Ant			~10%
11	Aigüestortes National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	1 of 15	~10%
	Large Velvet Ant			~10%
12	Hohe Tauern National Park	🇦🇹 Austria	1 of 15	~10%
	Large Velvet Ant			~10%
13	Tenorio Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	1 of 15	~10%
	Hoplognathoca costarricensis			~10%
14	Ecrins National Park	🇫🇷 France	1 of 15	~10%
	Large Velvet Ant			~10%
15	Big Cypress National Preserve	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~10%
16	Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	1 of 15	~10%
	Hoplognathoca costarricensis			~10%
17	Everglades National Park	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~10%
18	Sierra Nevada National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	1 of 15	~10%
	Tropidotilla litoralis			~10%
19	Great Smoky Mountains National Park	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~10%
20	Shenandoah National Park	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~10%
21	Cairngorms National Park	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	1 of 15	~10%
	Large Velvet Ant			~10%
22	Grand Teton National Park	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Dasymutilla vestita			~10%
23	Arenal Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	1 of 15	~10%
	Hoplognathoca costarricensis			~10%
24	Pyrénées National Park	🇫🇷 France	1 of 15	~10%
	Large Velvet Ant			~10%
25	Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~10%
26	Yellowstone National Park	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Dasymutilla vestita			~10%
27	Tijuca National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	1 of 15	<5%
	Traumatomutilla inermis			<5%
28	Rocky Mountain National Park	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	<5%
	Dasymutilla vestita			<5%
29	Wadden Sea National Park	🇩🇪 Germany	1 of 15	<5%
	Smicromyrme rufipes			<5%

Cities Ranked

#	City	Country	Species	Daily sighting probability
1	Houston	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~10%
2	Dallas	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	~10%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			~10%
3	Madrid	🇪🇸 Spain	1 of 15	<5%
	Tropidotilla litoralis			<5%
4	San José	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	1 of 15	<5%
	Hoplognathoca costarricensis			<5%
5	Warsaw	🇵🇱 Poland	1 of 15	<5%
	Smicromyrme rufipes			<5%
6	Philadelphia	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	<5%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			<5%
7	Baltimore	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	<5%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			<5%
8	Helsinki	🇫🇮 Finland	1 of 15	<5%
	Large Velvet Ant			<5%
9	Lisbon	🇵🇹 Portugal	1 of 15	<5%
	Tropidotilla litoralis			<5%
10	Washington	🇺🇸 United States	1 of 15	<5%
	Common Eastern Velvet Ant			<5%

Velvet Ants

Species in this group

Common Eastern Velvet Ant

Dasymutilla vestita

Large Velvet Ant

Mutilla marginata

Dasymutilla pulchra

Thistledown Velvet Ant

Hoplognathoca costarricensis

Magnificent Velvet Ant

Tropidotilla litoralis

Dasymutilla satanas

Dasymutilla foxi

Sphaeropthalma marpesia

Dasymutilla pseudopappus

Traumatomutilla inermis

Smicromyrme rufipes

Daily sighting probability by month

When they're spotted

Where to see Velvet Ants

Parks Ranked

Cities Ranked