| Great spangled fritillary | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nymphalidae |
| Genus: | Speyeria |
| Species: | S. cybele |
| Binomial name | |
| Speyeria cybele (Fabricius, 1775) | |
| Subspecies | |
See text | |
The great spangled fritillary (Speyeria cybele) is a North American butterfly of the family Nymphalidae.
Its wingspan ranges from 62 to 88 mm (2.4 to 3.5 in). [2] It is characterized by its orange colour above with five black dashes near forewing base and several irregular black dashes at the base of the hindwing. In addition, two rows of black crescents run along the edges of the wings. Below, the forewing is yellowish orange with black marks similar to the upperside, with a few silver spots on the tip of the wing. The hindwing is reddish brown with silver spots on the base and middle of the wing. A broad yellow band and silver triangles are the most notable qualities on the wing, next to the brown margin. Females tend to be darker than males and individuals from the western reaches of this species range tend to be brighter orange. Similar species include the Aphrodite fritillary ( Speyeria aphrodite ), the Atlantis fritillary ( Speyeria atlantis ) and the northwestern fritillary ( Speyeria hesperis ). It is distinguished from the Aphrodite and Atlantis fritillaries by a wide light submarginal band on the hindwing and instead of black spots, black dashes form on the margins of the forewing.
Listed alphabetically: [3]
The great spangled fritillary covers a wide range of North America stretching from southern Canada to northern California on the west to North Carolina on the east. Prime habitat for this species includes moist meadows and woodland edges.
Various species of native violets have reported to serve as a larval host plant for the great spangled fritillary, including the native round-leaf violet ( Viola rotundifolia ), the arrow-leaf violet ( Viola fimbriatula ) and the common blue violet ( Viola sororia ). [4] [5]
The silver-washed fritillary is a common and variable butterfly found over much of the Palearctic realm – Algeria, Europe and across the Palearctic to Japan.
The dark green fritillary 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.
The Niobe fritillary is a species of butterfly in the family Nymphalidae.
The Queen of Spain fritillary is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae.
Speyeria hydaspe, the Hydaspe fritillary, is a species of orange-brown butterfly found in the western portions of the United States and Canada. A small fritillary, it usually has cream-colored underwing spots, but the Vancouver Island subspecies has silver spots. It is similar to S. zerene and S. atlantis, but may be distinguished by the smooth and even appearance of its postmedian spotband. The caterpillars feed on violets including Viola glabella. A single brood flies from July through September and feeds on flower nectar. They may be found in moist forests, in clearings and subalpine meadows.
The regal fritillary is a striking nymphalid butterfly found among some of the remaining tallgrass and mixed-grass prairies in the east-central United States. This prairie-specialist butterfly has a characteristic deep orange color and unmistakable dark hindwings with two bands of spots. On the female, both bands of spots are white. However, on the male, the outer band of spots is orange in color. Females also tend to be slightly larger than males. The ventral surface of the hindwings is olive brown to black in color with bold silvery white spots. The wingspan of S. idalia usually measures 68–105 millimetres (2.7–4.1 in). Flight is in the summertime from approximately June to September and adults tend to be swift in flight, coasting close to the ground. It is listed as a species of special concern and believed extirpated in the US state of Connecticut.
Boloria bellona, the meadow fritillary, is a North American butterfly in the brushfoot family, Nymphalidae. The common name, meadow fritillary, is also used for a European butterfly species, Melitaea parthenoides.
Speyeria, commonly known as greater fritillaries, is a genus of butterflies in the family Nymphalidae commonly found in North America, Europe, and Asia. Some authors used to consider this taxon a subgenus of Argynnis, but it has been reestablished as a separate genus in 2017.
Euptoieta claudia, the variegated fritillary, is a North and South American butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. Even though the variegated fritillary has some very different characteristics from the Speyeria fritillaries, it is still closely related to them. Some of the differences are: variegated fritillaries have two or three broods per year vs. one per year in Speyeria; they are nomadic vs. sedentary; and they use a wide range of host plants vs. just violets. And because of their use of passionflowers as a host plant, variegated fritillaries also have taxonomic links to the heliconians. Their flight is low and swift, but even when resting or nectaring, this species is extremely difficult to approach, and, because of this, its genus name was taken from the Greek word euptoietos meaning "easily scared".
The Aphrodite fritillary is a fritillary butterfly, from North America.
Speyeria atlantis, the Atlantis fritillary, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae of North America. It is from the Avalon Peninsula of Newfoundland and Labrador to northern British Columbia, across the northern United States south as far as Colorado and West Virginia. It resides as far north as James Bay. The species is listed as endangered in Connecticut.
Speyeria edwardsii, the Edwards' fritillary, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae of North America. It is common from Alberta east to Manitoba and south as far as northern New Mexico.
Speyeria callippe, the callippe fritillary, is a North American species of butterflies in the brush-footed family Nymphalidae.
Argynnis is a genus of butterflies in the family Nymphalidae, one of several groups known as "fritillaries".
Speyeria carolae, or Carole's fritillary, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It was described by Cyril Franklin dos Passos and Lionel Paul Grey in 1942 and is found in North America, where it has only been recorded from the Charleston Mountains of Clark County, Nevada. The habitat consists of mountain slopes, foothills and forest openings.
