Brown-spotted mother-of-pearl butterfly
| Brown-spotted mother-of-pearl butterfly | ||||||||||||
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Brown-spotted mother-of-pearl butterfly ( Boloria selene ) |
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| Boloria selene | ||||||||||||
| ( Denis & Schiffermüller , 1775) |
The brown-spotted mother-of-pearl butterfly ( Boloria selene ), also known as the swamp-meadow mother-of-pearl butterfly , is a butterfly (day butterfly ) of the genus Boloria in the family of the noble butterfly (Nymphalidae). The specific epithet is derived from Selene , the moon goddess from Greek mythology . In 2013 it was named Butterfly of the Year by the BUND environmental foundation.
features
The moths reach a wingspan of 28 to 38 millimeters. The brightly lined wing tops are orange and have a dark pattern. On the submarginal dark outer band, spots are set off at an angle, followed by a series of dark spots postdiscally. In the disk region there are undulating patterns, and a round dark spot on each of the hind wings near the basal dark pattern.
On the underside this corresponds to a brightly bordered dark spot (larger than that of B. euphrosyne ) in a brown cell, next to it the undersides of the hind wings show three weakly demarcated mother-of-pearl spots discally in a cream-colored band and submarginally a number of such, set off with dark angles.
In addition to light (albino) forms, with the basic color white instead of orange, there are also darkened (melanistic) animals that are dirty orange in color; their appearance does not correspond to that of the examples shown below.
Dorsal view
△ Anterior view
living in the light
The caterpillars are about 22 millimeters long. They are dark gray-brown in color and have a black and slightly light marbling. They also have brown thorns that are light at the top. Behind their head they carry a pair of thorns pointing forward like a feeler.
Similar species
- Silver- spot mother-of-pearl butterflies ( Boloria euphrosyne ) - these are somewhat larger and quite similar mother-of-pearl butterflies. On the underside of the hind wing they only have a mother-of-pearl stain as a "silver stain" in a light band. In addition, the submarginal spots are not sharply set off at angles, but rather triangularly contoured on the upper side of the wing.
Occurrence
They occur in Europe , except in the south, in Russia , Mongolia , Sakhalin , Korea and North America . They are widespread in Central Europe and not rare. They are particularly found on wet meadows and in moor areas , but sometimes also in moist, clear areas in forests and on dry meadows.
Flight and caterpillar times
The animals fly in two generations per year from early May to late June and from mid-July to early September. In cooler latitudes and at higher altitudes, they fly in one generation from mid-May to early July.
Food of the caterpillars
The caterpillars feed on the leaves of dog violets ( Viola canina ) and marsh violets ( Viola palustris ), but also on other types of violets .
development
The females lay their eggs individually on the underside of the forage plants. The second generation caterpillars overwinter and need time to develop in the next spring before they pupate.
swell
Individual evidence
- ^ Arnold Spuler: The butterflies of Europe . tape 1 . E. Schweitzerbartsche Verlagbuchhandlung, Stuttgart 1908, p. 21 .
- ↑ bund.net: The swamp meadow mother-of-pearl butterfly is butterfly of the year 2013 (accessed May 27, 2013)
- ↑ a b c d e Heiko Bellmann : The new cosmos butterfly guide. Butterflies, caterpillars and forage plants. Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-440-09330-1 , p. 164.
- ↑ a b Tom Tolman, Richard Lewington: Die Tagfalter Europäische und Nordwestafrikas , S. 160f., Franckh-Kosmos Verlags-GmbH & Co, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-440-07573-7
Web links
- Lepiforum e. V. Taxonomy and Photos
- Moths and Butterflies of Europe and North Africa (English)
- www.schmetterling-raupe.de
- Boloria (Clossiana) selene at Fauna Europaea
Graubindiger Mohrenfalter (2003) | Aurora Butterfly (2004) | Ocher-binding velvet butterfly (2005) | Swallowtail (2006) | Map (2007) | Argusbläuling (2008) | Peacock butterfly (2009) | Schönbär (2010) | Great Schiller Butterfly (2011) | Little Peacock Butterfly (2012) | Brown-spotted mother-of-pearl butterfly (2013) | Spurge Hawk (2014) | Red ribbon (2015) | Gooseberry Tender (2016) | Golden Eight (2017) | Big Fox (2018) | Checkerboard Butterfly (2019)