Dark green fritillary

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Dark green fritillary
Nymphalidae - Argynnis aglaja.JPG
Male, Val d'Aosta, Italy
Grosser Perlmutterfalter, Elsenborn, Ostbelgien (3939194668).jpg
Female, Elsenborn, Belgium
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Speyeria
Species:
S. aglaja
Binomial name
Speyeria aglaja
Synonyms [3]
List
  • Papilio aglaia (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Papilio aglaja Linnaeus, 1758
  • Argynnis mitchelli Kershaw, 1952
  • Argynnis robnora Kershaw, 1952
  • Argynnis smrzi Slabý, 1949
  • Argynnis ovalis Cabeau, 1930
  • Argynnis molybdina Newnham, 1917
  • Argynnis viridiatra Strand, 1912
  • Argynnis gutta Wileman, 1911
  • Mesoachidalia plutus Oberthür, 1909
  • Argynnis fusca Tutt, 1896
  • Argynnis fuscans Tutt, 1896
  • Argynnis pallida Tutt, 1896
  • Argynnis wimani Holmgren, 1888
  • Argynnis aberrans Lampa, 1885
  • Argynnis aglaja (Linnaeus, 1758)
  • Argynnis aurea Tutt, 1896
  • Argynnis eridioides Pflümer, 1879
  • Argynnis charlotta Haworth, 1803
  • Argynnis emilia Acerbi, 1802
  • Mesoacidalia sinenigra Aagesen
  • Speyeria albomaculata Rebel
  • Speyeria emilocuples Warren, 1955
  • Speyeria hindenburgi Schuster von Forstner, 1928
  • Speyeria arvernensis Bramson, 1890

The dark green fritillary (Speyeria aglaja) is a species of butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. The insect has a wide range in the Palearctic realm - Europe, Morocco, Iran, Siberia, Central Asia, China, Korea, and Japan.

Contents

Taxonomy

The dark green fritillary was first formally described as Papilio aglaja in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae published in 1758 with its type locality given as Sweden. This species is now classified in the genus Speyeria which is classified within the subfamily Heliconiinae of the brush-footed butterfly family, Nymphalidae. [4]

Subspecies

Description in Seitz

The large fritillary is fiery reddish yellow above, the basal area of the male being always duller. The markings are constant: a black margin, a row of deep black but thin marginal arcs, a very straight, central row of dots, of which only the last one of the forewing is shifted distad; between this row of dots and the base there are six thin black transverse bands extending from the subcostal vein into the wing. The underside of the hindwing is characteristic; it bears numerous silver-spots on a partly verdigris partly leather-yellow ground, but never a row of ocelli in the marginal area, as is the case in the forms of the Niobe fritillary (Fabriciana niobe) and high brown fritillary (F. adippe). [5]

Biology

Dark green fritillaries lay ther eggs in the high summer in Great Britain, either on or in the vicinity of species of Viola . When the caterpillar hatches it eats its eggshell and immediately begins to hibernate. In the following Spring the caterpillars emerge from hibernation and feed on violets, typically common dog-violet ( Viola riviniana ) but also the marsh dog violet ( V. palustris ) and the heath dog violet ( V. canina ), and complete their life cycle, pupating in May, with the butterflies emerging a few weeks later. The will nectar on common knapweed ( Centaurea nigra ), marsh thistle ( Cirsium palustre ), devil's-bit scabious ( Succisa pratensis ) and field scabious ( Knautia arvensis ). [6]

References

  1. van Swaay, C.; Wynhoff, I.; Wiemers, M.; Katbeh-Bader, A.; Power, A.; Benyamini, D.; Tzirkalli, E.; Balletto, E.; Monteiro, E.; Karaçetin, E.; Franeta, F.; Pe'er, G.; Welch, H.; Thompson, K.; Pamperis, L.; Dapporto, L.; Šašić, M.; López Munguira, M.; Micevski, N.; Dupont, P.; Garcia-Pereira, P.; Moulai, R.; Caruana, R.; Verovnik, R.; Bonelli, S.; Beshkov, S. (2014). "Argynnis aglaja (Mediterranean assessment)". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2014: e.T174332A53707131. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  2. van Swaay, C.; Wynhoff, I.; Verovnik, R.; Wiemers, M.; López Munguira, M.; Maes, D.; Sasic, M.; Verstrael, T.; Warren, M.; Settele, J. (2010). "Argynnis aglaja (Europe assessment)". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2010: e.T174332A7052014. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  3. "Speyeria aglaja". Catalogue of Life . Species 2000: Leiden, the Netherlands. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  4. "Speyeria Scudder, 1872". ftp.funet.fi. Retrieved 7 April 2025.
  5. Seitz. A. in Seitz, A. ed. Band 1: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes, Die palaearktischen Tagfalter, 1909, 379 Seiten, mit 89 kolorierten Tafeln (3470 Figuren)PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  6. Paul Kirkland (2022). Discovering Scotland's Butterflies. Pisces Publications. pp. 122–125. ISBN   9781874357995.