Sympetrum striolatum
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The common darter (Sympetrum striolatum) is a dragonfly of the family Libellulidae native to Eurasia. It is one of the most common dragonflies in Europe, occurring in a wide variety of water bodies, though with a preference for breeding in still water such as ponds and lakes. In the south of its range adults are on the wing all year round.
Sympetrum species are not easy to tell apart and in most areas more than one Sympetrum species will occur. Females and teneral individuals have light yellow thorax and abdomen. Males turn red as they mature. Females darken with age, becoming a dark chocolate brown, and sometimes develop a blue colouration to the bottom of the abdomen. The wings also develop a brown tinge with age. In all cases the legs have a cream or yellow stripe on a black background - this is a diagnostic feature of this species. The pterostigma of the females can be red, blue, pale blue or brown.
Adults can be seen on the wing all year round in southern Europe but in northern regions they occur from June to November. This small dragonfly is seen in a wide variety of habitats, including lakes, ponds, canals and slow-flowing rivers. They are ambush... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Snowdonia National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Kiskunság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 3 | Cairngorms National Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 4 | Mercantour National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 5 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 6 | Wadden Sea National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 7 | Fertő-Hanság National Park | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 8 | Sierra de Guadarrama National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 9 | Bavarian Forest National Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 10 | Sierra Nevada National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 11 | Triglav National Park | 🇸🇮 Slovenia | |
| 12 | Doñana National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 13 | Camargue | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 14 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Brussels | 🇧🇪 Belgium | |
| 3 | Munich | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 4 | Yerevan | 🇦🇲 Armenia | |
| 5 | Manchester | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 6 | Milan | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 7 | Liverpool | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 8 | Paris | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 9 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 10 | Rostov-on-Don | 🇷🇺 Russia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Common Darter sighting in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, based on 101 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 32nd most-seen of the 818 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Common Darter in Wadden Sea National Park on a given day, against under 5% in December to June, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Darter sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
6th of 14
Of the 14 parks where we can rate Common Darter sightings, Wadden Sea National Park ranks 6th at about 10%. The best odds are in Snowdonia National Park (United Kingdom, about 30%), Kiskunság National Park (Hungary, about 20%) and Cairngorms National Park (United Kingdom, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Darter is recorded against all the insects logged in Wadden Sea National Park (101 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.
