Melitaea didyma (Esper, 1778)

Taxonomy

class Insecta → subclass Pterygota → infraclass Neoptera → superorder Holometabola → order Lepidoptera → superfamily Papilionoidea → family Nymphalidae → subfamily Melitaeinae → tribe Melitaeini → subtribe Melitaeina → genus Melitaea → species Melitaea didyma

Species name(s)

Melitaea didyma (Esper, 1778) = Papilio didyma Esper, 1778 = Papilio cytheris Mueschen, 1781 = Papilio athulia Fabricius, 1787 = orientalis Herrich-Schäffer, 1856 = alpina Staudinger, 1861 = occidentalis Staudinger, 1861 = meridionalis Staudinger, 1861 = dalmatina Staudinger, 1861 = graeca Staudinger, 1861 = rossica Staudinger, 1861 = Didymaeformia didyma = Melitaea (didyma) didyma = Melitaea ambra Higgins 1941 = Melitaea dschungarica Oberthür 1909 = Melitaea ignaea Verity 1929 = Melitaea majellensis Dannehl 1927 = Melitaea marginata Skala 1907 = Melitaea marginimaculata Kautz 1923 = Melitaea mauritii Reverdin 1918 = Melitaea minor Kzienschopolsky 1911 = Melitaea minor Nicolesco 1948 = Melitaea mireio Foulquier 1923 = Melitaea moulinsi Trimoulet 1924 = Melitaea nigerrima Schultz 1908 = Melitaea nigra Skala 1907 = Melitaea nigralba Febvay du Couedic 1934 = Melitaea nigrita Skala 1908 = Melitaea nigroguttata Sovinsky 1927 = Melitaea nominoe Oberthür 1900 = Melitaea oblongomaculata Skala 1908 = Melitaea ocellata Skala 1907 = Melitaea ochracea Skala 1908 = Melitaea pallida Skala 1907 = Melitaea pieszczeki Skala 1909 = Melitaea problematica Sheljuzhko 1929 = Melitaea pudica Stichel 1901 = Melitaea pumila Verity 1919 = Melitaea radiata Aigner-Abafi 1906 = Melitaea radiata Herold 1930 = Melitaea radiata Oberthür 1909 = Melitaea robiginosa Kardakoff 1928 = Melitaea romula Verity 1922 = Melitaea romulanigra Verity 1950 = Melitaea rubida Verity 1919 = Melitaea speciosa Schultz 1908 = Melitaea storacei Berio 1942 = Melitaea striata Skala 1907 = Melitaea tenuisignata Skala 1907 = Melitaea unifasciata Caruel 1944 = Melitaea wullschlegei Oberthür 1909 = Melitaea ziegleri Stichel 1900 = Melitaea zinburgi Skala 1907. [9, 10, 187]

Spotted Fritillary.

urn:lsid:insecta.pro:taxonomy:8602

Expansion

This species marks on the maps: 5.

Zoogeographical regions

Palaearctic.

Russia regions

#1. Kaliningradsky; #4. Evropeisky Severo-Zapadny; #7. Evropeisky yuzhno-tayozhny; #8. Evropeisky Tsentralny; #9. Evropeisky Tsentralno-Chernozyomny; #10. Sredne-Volzhsky; #11. Volgo-Donsky; #12. Nizhnevolzhsky; #13. Zapadno-Kavkazsky; #14. Vostochno-Kavkazsky; #16. Sredne-Uralsky; #17. Yuzhno-Uralsky; #20. Yuzhno-Zapadnosibirsky; #22. Krasnoyarsky; #23. Predaltaisky; #24. Gorno-Altaisky; #25. Tuvinsky.

Primary colors

Red, Orange, Brown/Gray/Black, White.

Flight time

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Larva lifespan

 					January 					February 					March 					April 					May 					June 					July 					August 					September 					October 					November 					December 			

Detailed information with references

Distribution

Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary, Germany, Greece, Spain, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sicily, Slovakia, the Soviet Union - the European part of Turkey - European part of France, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Estonia, Yugoslavia. [1].
Albania, Andorra, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Germany, Greece (mainland), Spain (mainland), Italy (mainland), Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal (mainland), Russia, Romania, North Aegean,Sicily, Slovakia, Slovenia, Turkey (European part), Ukraine, France (mainland), Croatia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Estonia, Yugoslavia. [10].
Regions of the Russian Federation: the Volga-Don, East Caucasus, Gorno-Altaisk, the European North-West, the European Central Black Earth, the European Central European South taiga, the Western Caucasus, Kaliningrad, Krasnoyarsk, Lower Volga, Prealtay, Mid-Volzhsky, Average -Uralsky, Tuva, South West Siberian,South Ural. [3].
The area of the red checkerbird covers North Africa, almost all of Europe, as well as Central Asia. There is no such butterfly in the UK, Denmark and Holland. [85].

Imago Habitus and Differences from alike species

As the name of the butterfly suggests, the main background of its color is not red, like many other shashechnits and mother-of-pearl, but red. At the same time, females are noticeably darker than males. It forms a huge number of geographical and individual forms. [85].

General info about Imago

Places of summer — meadows and clearings, sparse shrubs. [85].

Imago lifespan

May-June and July-August. [85].

Larva food plants / other food objects

Plantago, Veronica, Digitalis, Valeriana, Verbascum, Antirrhinum, Linaria, Stachys. [28].
Подорожник, валериана, коровяк, вероника и другие. [85].

Larva lifespan

The caterpillar Melitaea didyma lives from summer to April—May of the following year, wintering. [85].

Pupa

The pupal stage lasts about 2 weeks. [85].

Overwintering stage

Caterpillar. [85].

Subspecies of Melitaea didyma

Melitaea didyma africafelix Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. alaeida Stauder, 1925. [187]
M. d. albescens Verity, 1916. [187]
M. d. alpina Staudinger, 1861. [187]
M. d. altaica Grum-Grshimailo, 1893. [187]
M. d. ambra Higgings, 1941. [9]
M. d. androtropia Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. apenninigena Verity, 1919. [187]
M. d. armoricana Oberthür, 1911. [187]
M. d. athalia Fabricius, 1787. [187]
M. d. atralpina Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. austria Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. boschmai Eisner, 1942. [187]
M. d. bosphorana Culot, 1909. [187]
M. d. calcea Skala, 1928. [187]
M. d. castiliana Melcon, 1910. [187]
M. d. catoprotea Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. celladdita Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. cellapartita Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. cinerea Higgins, 1941. [187]
M. d. contracta Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. crasnensis Hormuzaki, 1894. [187]
M. d. crimitaea Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. deletasicca Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. didyma. [9]
M. d. distinctissima Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. druentia Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. elavar Fruhstorfer, 1917. [9]
M. d. elevar Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. embriki Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. eutitania Fruhstorfer, 1923. [187]
M. d. fasciata Vorbrodt, 1917. [187]
M. d. folvonigrolimbata Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. garumna Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. geminella Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. georgi Fruhstorfer, 1916. [187]
M. d. graeca Staudinger, 1870. [187]
M. d. gravosana Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. hummeli Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. ibra Higgins, 1964. [187]
M. d. infracrasselunata Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. inframedioconfluens Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. inversa Skala, 1928. [187]
M. d. irridens Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. kansicola Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. kazanskyi Krulikovski, 1901. [187]
M. d. kirgisica Bryk, 1940. [9]
M. d. latefasciata Vorbrodt & Müller-Rutz, 1916. [187]
M. d. leopardata Verity, 1924. [187]
M. d. lesora Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. lesoralpina Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. libanotica Belter, 1934. [187]
M. d. lilliputana Oberthür, 1909. [187]
M. d. lucida Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. magnalpina Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. maledescripta Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. mandschukoana Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. mariannae Skala, 1928. [187]
M. d. marsilia Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. mauretanica Oberthür, 1911. [187]
M. d. medioduplicata Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. microleopardata Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. mongoligena Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. naina Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. neera Fischer de Waldheim, 1840. [9]
M. d. neeraeformis Verity, 1913. [187]
M. d. niesiolowskii Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. nigra Balestre, 1903. [187]
M. d. nigrorubida Verity, 1919. [187]
M. d. occidentalis Staudinger, 1861. [9]
M. d. ochra Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. ochracea Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. oreithyia Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. orientalis Herrich-Schäffer, 1856. [187]
M. d. orinomus Rütimeyer, 1942. [187]
M. d. palustris Verity, 1919. [187]
M. d. parvalpina Verity, 1928. [187]
M. d. patycosana Turati, 1912. [187]
M. d. polaris Grum-Grshimailo, 1900. [187]
M. d. pontifex Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. porrecta Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. postcelladdita Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. posticemediocrasse Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. protea Verity, 1916. [187]
M. d. pyrenealpina Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. ravalpina Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. rebrensis Gussich, 1917. [187]
M. d. rectealpina Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. roccii Turati, 1921. [187]
M. d. schwingenschussi Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. seilemis Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. siccalta Verity, 1950. [187]
M. d. subalpina Verity, 1919. [187]
M. d. subpatycosana Verity, 1924. [187]
M. d. subrubida Verity, 1919. [187]
M. d. subseilemis Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. subtarlonia Verity, 1929. [187]
M. d. subtuscrassipuncta Reverdin, 1919. [187]
M. d. supercaldaria de Sagarra, 1926. [187]
M. d. sutschanala Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. tarlonia Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. transbaicalica Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. tschecha Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. turkestanica Sheljuzhko, 1929. [9]
M. d. uralicola Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. variabilis Belter, 1934. [187]
M. d. viridescens Fruhstorfer, 1917. [187]
M. d. walteri Bryk, 1940. [187]
M. d. warneckei Bryk, 1940. [187]

Authors

Initial species uploading to the site: Peter Khramov.

Photos: Nadin Flegontova, Igor Torgachkin.

Text data: Peter Khramov.

The species characteristics formalization: Peter Khramov.

References

[1] O. Karsholt, J. Razowski (eds.), 1996. The Lepidoptera of Europe: a distributional checklist
[3] Каталог чешуекрылых (Lepidoptera) России. Под ред. С. Ю. Синёва. СПб.; М.: Товарищество научных изданий КМК, 2008
[9] Tree of Life (funet.fi), 2012
[10] de Jong, Y.S.D.M. (ed.) (2011) Fauna Europaea version 2.4 (faunaeur.org)
[28] Moths and Butterflies of Europe and North Africa (leps.it), 2012
[85] Lepidoptera species catalogue, Lepidoptera.ru, 2015
[187] Species 2000, http://www.sp2000.org