''Nymphalis vaualbum'' or ''N. l-album'', the Compton tortoiseshell, or false comma, is a species of

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

in 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 ...

. An assertion that the name ''Nymphalis l-album'' is in fact the correct name over the widely used ''Nymphalis vaualbum'' proved to have backing when it was discovered the description covering ''vaualbum'' did not include a description or type specimen. Thus ''vaualbum'' can be considered '' nomen nudum'', giving ''Nymphalis l-album'' priority.

Description

Wingspan: 2 1/2 - 3 1/16 inches (6.4 - 7.8 cm). The Upper side is orange-brown with darker wing bases and black patches. There is a single white costal spot on both the forewing and the hindwing. The verso is mottled grey and brown, with dark bases and borders. Regardless of the ground colour (grey-brown or a buff brown), there is great contrast between the dark chocolate-brown discal region and the paler postdiscal area in males, less so in females. The hindwing verso has a ‘V’-shaped white mark adjoining the cell at S4. In some specimens this ‘V’ is replaced by a dash, an ‘L’,a ‘C’ or a ‘J’ and it may consist of just a few white scales, or be absent altogether. This marking is far more prominent in males. This V mark is shared with ''

Polygonia c-album ''Polygonia c-album'', the comma, is a food generalist ( polyphagous) butterfly species belonging to the family Nymphalidae. The angular notches on the edges of the forewings are characteristic of the genus ''Polygonia'', which is why species ...

'', hence the name false comma.

Distribution

It is seen in deciduous and coniferous forest in a wide range throughout the Northern Hemisphere. The nominate subspecies (''N. v. l-album'') is found throughout central Asia. The subspecies, ''N. v. j-album'', range consists of

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

south into

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

and

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

. They are seen east to

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

and eastern

and south to

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

and

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

. They rarely migrate to

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic Canada, Atlantic region. The province comprises t ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

, and

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. The species is also found in the Palearctic - Eastern Europe, Romania, Ukraine, the south of Russia to the areas west of the Urals, the southern part of Siberia to the Himalayas and Japan.

Life cycle

The adult female will lay her eggs in a clump on the host plant. Once the eggs hatch the caterpillars will feed together until they pupate. There is one brood that flies from July to November.

Larval foods

*'' Populus'' * ''Salix'' *''

Betula populifolia ''Betula populifolia'' (gray or grey birch) is a deciduous tree native to eastern North America. Range It ranges from southeastern Ontario east to Nova Scotia, and south to Pennsylvania and New Jersey, with disjunct populations in Indiana, Vi ...

'' *''

Betula papyrifera ''Betula papyrifera'' (paper birch, also known as (American) white birch and canoe birch) is a short-lived species of birch native to northern North America. Paper birch is named for the tree's thin white bark, which often peels in paper like ...

Adult foods

Plant sap Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells (vessel elements or tracheids) or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. These cells transport water and nutrients throughout the plant. Sap is distinct from latex, resin, or cell sap; it is a se ...

*Rotting fruit *

Willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...

nectar

Image Gallery

Nymphalis vaualbum, Compton Tortoiseshell, Bruce, WI

Nymphalis vaualbum, Compton Tortoiseshell, underside, Bruce WI

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q138032 Nymphalis Butterflies of North America Butterflies of Asia Butterflies of Europe Butterflies described in 1775