The Scotch argus (''Erebia aethiops'') 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. In spite of its English name ''argus'', it is not a close relation of the

brown argus ''Aricia agestis'', the brown argus, is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It is found throughout the Palearctic realm, north to northern Jutland (Denmark) and east to Siberia and the Tian Shan. Subspecies *''A. a. agestis'' southern and ce ...

nor the northern brown argus.

Taxonomy

Subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

include:"''Erebia'' Dalman, 1816"
at Markku Savela's ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms'' * ''Erebia aethiops'' ssp. ''aethifps'' (Esper, 1777) (Europe) * ''Erebia aethiops'' ssp. ''caledonia'' (Verity, 1911 (Scotland) * ''Erebia aethiops'' ssp. ''deprezzivaga'' Verity, 1935 * ''Erebia aethiops'' ssp. ''fogarasica'' Warren, 1931 * ''Erebia aethiops'' ssp. ''isouata'' Goltz, 1939 (Shansi)

Distribution and habitat

''Erebia aethiops'' is widespread in the

Palearctic realm The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...

, including most of Europe, the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

and

Apennines The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (; grc-gre, links=no, Ἀπέννινα ὄρη or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; la, Appenninus or – a singular with plural meaning;''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which wou ...

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

Asia Minor Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

, the

Urals The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through European ...

, and the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range, have historically ...

. English colonies are found at

Arnside Knott Arnside Knott is a hill with a summit elevation of , near Arnside, Cumbria, England. Although it is in South Lakeland district it is not in the Lake District National Park, lying south of the River Kent which forms the south eastern boundary of ...

and

Smardale Gill Smardale is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Waitby, in the Eden district, in Cumbria, England. In 1891 the parish had a population of 36. Geography and history The village of Smardale lies in hilly agricultural la ...

both in

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

. This species is found in most of northern Scotland, and in western areas in south Scotland.Steven Cheshir
Argus British Butterflies
/ref> In Europe and Russia, these butterflies prefer the edge of pine forests and tall damp grassland in hills and mountains up to 2400 m.

Description

''Erebia aethiops'' has a

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 ...

of 42–46 mm. Antennae are clavate (club shaped). The background colour of the wings varies from dark brown to black brown, with reddish-yellow bands, black eyespots with white pupils and greyish wing fringes, weakly chequered in the females. On the forewing there are three or four eyespots, usually two apical plus a third detached, while on the hindwings there are four or five. The underside of the hindwings shows a whitish or cream bandingMatt Rowlin
Euro Butterflies
/ref> but there is a slightly marked sexual dimorphism. In

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, the subspecies ''caledonia'' has a narrower reddish-yellow band and never contains more than three small eyespots. Three black spots are present on each hindwing. The egg is oval shaped, with 20 to 28 longitudinal ribs. The mature caterpillar is yellow brown, with a brown head. The pupae are yellow brown and relatively short and compact, reaching a length of . This species is rather similar to ''

Erebia ligea ''Erebia ligea'', the Arran brown, is a member of the subfamily Satyrinae of the family Nymphalidae. This brown is widespread in south-eastern and northern Europe. It prefers mixed woodlands at low altitudes. It is rarely seen in open areas. Th ...

'', but the fringes on the edges of the upper side of the wings are more light grey, while in ''E. ligea'' they are white.

Biology

This species is univoltine. Adults fly from June to August. The eggs are laid singly on the leaves of grass. The larvae hatch after two weeks. The hibernating larva is reported to feed on ''

Agrostis ''Agrostis'' (bent or bentgrass) is a large and very nearly cosmopolitan genus of plants in the grass family, found in nearly all the countries in the world. It has been bred as a GMO creeping bent grass. Species * '' Agrostis aequivalvi'' ...

'', ''

Dactylis ''Dactylis'' is a genus of Eurasian and North African plants in the bluegrass subfamily within the grass family. ''Dactylis'' is native to North Africa, they are found throughout the world, and are an invasive species. They are known in Englis ...

'', '' Poa annua'', ''

Bromus erectus ''Bromus erectus'', commonly known as erect brome, upright brome or meadow brome, is a dense, course, tufted perennial grass. It can grow to . Like many brome grasses the plant is hairy. The specific epithet ''erectus'' is Latin, meaning "erect ...

'' and other grasses. In Scotland the main host plants are purple moor-grass (''

Molinia caerulea ''Molinia caerulea'', known by the common name purple moor-grass, is a species of grass that is native to Europe, west Asia, and north Africa. It grows in locations from the lowlands up to in the Alps. Like most grasses, it grows best in acid so ...

'') and blue moor-grass (''

Sesleria caerulea ''Sesleria caerulea'', the blue moor-grass, is a species of perennial grass in the family Poaceae, native to Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and ...

'').

Gallery

Erebia aethiops egg.jpg, Egg Erebia aethiops caterpillar.jpg, Caterpillar Erebia aethiops chrysalis.jpg, Pupa Scotch argus (Erebia aethiops caledonia) underside.jpg, ''E. a. caledonia''

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle, in modern Gaelic, ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a historic county and registration county of western Scotland. Argyll is of ancient origin, and corresponds to most of the part of the ancient kingdom of ...

, Scotland

References

External links

Moths and Butterflies of Europe and North Africa
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1395764 Erebia Butterflies of Europe Butterflies of Asia Butterflies described in 1777 Taxa named by Eugenius Johann Christoph Esper