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Field Notes

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

Female feeding on flower of larval food plant Caper, Capparis spinosa

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

Typical appearence of Caper, Capparis spinosa

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

Heavy drinking from Caper bush.

High Atlas, Morocco, July 2005

Middle Atlas Mountains, Morocco, September 2001

Male

This is principally a north African species although it has established itself in the extreme south of Spain in very hot low level habitats. I've only ever seen it in north Africa where it is very widespread in autumn (September) but much harder to come across in spring, except in the south. In the south it is still not common in spring but it is fairly easy to find a couple of examples amongst gullies.

Unfortunately it is an active butterfly and it is my loss that I only have very brief footage of this spectacular butterfly. In September it was common on the northern foothills of the Middle Atlas mountains, an area where we didn't find any examples earlier in May of the same year. It was ranging wide and far giving the impression of migration event rather than of stable colonies. Consequently I don't know if it reaches these places every autumn but I can't really see why it shouldn't. With global warming, it is not too much of an extrapolation to see how this species crossed the short distance to Spain and colonise that country's increasingly warm south coast.

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