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Spanish Gatekeeper
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Var, France,
May 2004
Male with highly visible brown scent scales on the
forewing (compare female below). |
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Var, France, May
2004
Female |
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Var, France,
May 2004
Male |
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Spanish
Gatekeeper
Pyronia bathseba
Distribution: N Africa, Iberian peninsula and Mediterranean France.
Identification: The white stripe on the underside hindwing is
distinctive. Orange upperside with broad brown borders. Males have a large and
prominent sex brand in the the basal and discal areas.
Flight time: April to July. I've found it in early May in S France at
sea level and early July in Morocco at 2200m.
Habitat: Grassy places usually amongst dry scrub. Larvae feed on
Brachypodium grasses.
Behaviour: Generally skulk low down about the entwined twigs and
branches of scrub. I've found it on a beach where the only grasses to be found
were amongst low scrub that was stabilising the dunes. Frequently hides from the
sun by resting low in the bushes.
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Var, France,
May 2006 |
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Middle Atlas,
Morocco, June 2005
Much narrower
unh white band is normal in North African populations. |
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Var, France,
May 2004
Female |
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Var, France,
May 2004 |
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Bouches du Rhône,
France, May 2002 |
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Bouches du Rhône,
France, May 2002 |
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Bouches du Rhône,
France, May 2002 |
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