''Boloria aquilonaris'', the cranberry fritillary, is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

of the family

Nymphalidae The Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species have a red ...

. It is found in northern and central Europe."''Boloria'' Moore, 1900"
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms''

Description

The

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...

is 34–40 mm. Upperside orange with brown basal suffusion and adorned with various marks of brown colour, submarginal round spots and lines forming festoons. The underside of the forewing is lighter and more coloured, that of the hindwing reddish and presenting silver spots.

Biology

The butterfly flies from June to August depending on the location. The larvae feed on

cranberry Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus ''Oxycoccus'' of the genus ''Vaccinium''. In Britain, cranberry may refer to the native species ''Vaccinium oxycoccos'', while in North America, cranberry ...

and ''

Andromeda polifolia ''Andromeda polifolia'', common name bog-rosemary, is a species of flowering plant in the heath family Ericaceae, native to northern parts of the Northern Hemisphere. It is the only member of the genus ''Andromeda'', and is only found in bogs in ...

''.

Gallery

Boloria aquilonaris MHNT CUT 2013 3 22 Foret de Bray.jpg, Both sides Boloria.aquilonaris.2.jpg Boloria.aquilonaris.2689.jpg, June, 1998 in

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Boloria aquilonaris egg.jpg, Egg Boloria aquilonaris caterpillar.jpg, Larvae in July 2010,

Ardennes The Ardennes (french: Ardenne ; nl, Ardennen ; german: Ardennen; wa, Årdene ; lb, Ardennen ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Be ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Boloria aquilonaris, Hochmoor Perlmuttfalter 13.JPG, Mating

References

Boloria Butterflies of Europe Cranberries Butterflies described in 1908 {{Heliconiinae-stub