Volucella facialis
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Volucella is a genus of large, broad-bodied, dramatic hover-flies. They have distinctive plumose aristae and the face is extended downward. They are strongly migratory and males are often territorial. Adults feed on nectar of flowers and are often seen sunning on leaves. The larvae of most species live in nests of bumblebees and social wasps, where they are detritivores and larval predators. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-Faced Swiftwing sighting in Yellowstone National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 127th most-seen of the 160 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.
July
In that month about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow-Faced Swiftwing in Yellowstone National Park on a given day, against under 5% in August to June, the lowest months. That is one of Yellowstone National Park's driest months, with about 30 mm of rain against 70 mm in February.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Yellow-Faced Swiftwing sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Yellowstone National Park, in our data
Yellowstone National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Yellow-Faced Swiftwing sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Syrphidae
The closest relatives of the Yellow-Faced Swiftwing that you can see in Yellowstone National Park (family Syrphidae, Hover Flies) are Common Drone Fly (about 10%) and Common Loopwing Aphideater (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Yellow-Faced Swiftwing is recorded against all the insects logged in Yellowstone National Park (5 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.
