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Lesser
Clouded Yellow
Colias chrysotheme
Distribution: Steeply declining in central and eastern Europe. Romania
appears to have good populations, as does Hungary. But the species has been lost
from many former sites.
Identification: All the orange-yellow Clouded Yellows are similar. In
flight this butterfly is even less distinctive than I had thought from images in
the guide books. It is not conspicuously smaller than C. croceus, nor
yellower. The key features are the pointed forewing apex and the yellow veins
that cross the dark brown/ black margins on the upperside.
Flight time: Multiple brooded. In Romania the generations fly
April/May, June/July and finally August/September.
Habitat: Open grassy slopes with a rich variety of low plants. Larvae
in Romania feed on Hairy Tare, Vicia hirsuta, which is an inconspicuous
plant even when in full flower.
Behaviour: Flies rapidly low over grassy slopes.
Additional notes: In 2009 I was very luck at the end of May to find a
single individual in reasonable condition.
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