Big blue sun rose
| Big blue sun rose | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Great blue sunflower ( Aricia artaxerxes ) |
||||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Aricia artaxerxes | ||||||||||||
| ( Fabricius , 1793) |
The Great Bluebird ( Aricia artaxerxes ) is a butterfly ( butterfly ) from the Bluebird family (Lycaenidae).
features
The moths reach slightly larger wingspans than the very similar Little Sunflower Bluebirds ( Aricia agestis ). The species are very difficult to distinguish from one another, because their description is almost identical: They have dark brown wing tops, with clearly orange-colored edge spots visible on both the front and the hind wings. The wing undersides of both pairs of wings are light gray-brown. Black, light-rimmed points and broad, orange-colored spots arranged in a band can be seen on them.
In contrast to the small ones, however, large blue sunflower usually only have weakly developed orange-colored spots on the edge. Nevertheless, no reliable determination is possible based on these characteristics either. Even examinations of the genital organs cannot rule out the mistake.
The caterpillars are more blue-green in color (instead of green like those of A. agestis ) and they also lack the red longitudinal lines on the sides and back.
Similar species
- Little blue sunflower ( Aricia agestis )
Occurrence
The moths occur in North Africa , in Turkey east to the Altai and in parts of northern , southern and central Europe . They are absent in large parts of northern Central Europe and the Iberian Peninsula . Based on the distribution in some parts of Europe, the two similar species can be easily separated, as in some areas only one species occurs. They inhabit sunny slopes with grass cover, especially on limestone soils and in mountainous areas . They are also often found on coastal cliffs.
Flight time
The moths fly in one generation from mid-June to the end of July, the lesser sunflower blues occur earlier in the year due to their two to three generations and also fly much longer.
Food of the caterpillars
Like those of ( A. agestis ), the caterpillars feed primarily on yellow sunflower ( Helianthemum nummularium ) but also on cranesbills ( geranium ) and heron-beaks ( Erodium ) such as B. of small cranesbill ( Geranium pusillum ) and heron beak ( Erodium cicutarium ).
development
The females lay their eggs on the upper side of the leaves of the forage plants. However, the caterpillars only feed on the underside of the leaves. They overwinter on the ground in dried up leaves, next to the plants.
swell
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Heiko Bellmann : The new Kosmos butterfly guide, butterflies, caterpillars and forage plants . Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-440-09330-1 , p. 152 .
- ↑ a b c d Tom Tolman, Richard Lewington: The butterflies of Europe and Northwest Africa . Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-440-07573-7 , p. 109 .
