Argynnis adippe
| High brown fritillary | |
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| Dorsal side, Germany | |
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| Ventral side, Austria | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nymphalidae |
| Genus: | Argynnis |
| Species: | A. adippe |
| Binomial name | |
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Argynnis adippe (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775) |
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| Synonyms | |
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Argynnis adippe, the high brown fritillary, is a large and brightly colored butterfly of the Nymphalidae family, native to Europe and across the Palearctic to Japan. It is known for being Great Britain's most threatened butterfly and is listed as a vulnerable species under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Like other fritillaries it is dependent on warm climates with violet rich flora.
The high brown fritillary's wingspan is on average around 65 mm. Its upper wings are orange with black markings and the undersides are colored a duller orange with white and brown markings. While flying it is very hard to distinguish from the dark green fritillary which has many of the same markings. The male and female fritillary share many of the same physical features.
Larvae are brown with a single longitudinal white stripe down the length of their body. Their bodies are covered in brown spikes which aid in camouflaging them from predators as they move among dead fern fronds.
This butterfly has many subspecies that span across Europe and throughout Asia and Africa, given that there are temperate temperatures in those regions. Northern Europe has seen a severe decline in fritillary population but it is still relatively abundant in other parts of Europe.
As of 2015, the high brown fritillary was the most threatened British butterfly species. Populations remain in four areas in Great Britain. The Morecambe Bay Limestone hills, the Glamorgan Brackenlands, Dartmoor and Exmoor all support a fritillary population, while it has declined in most other Northern European regions.
There are two main habitats that support high brown fritillary populations: bracken and limestone outcrops. Bracken habitats are found across its geographic range but limestone outcrops are specific to Great Britain.
These habitats are usually at lower altitudes in open fields and are found across the fritillarys complete range, usually facing in a southern direction. Their flora is not very diverse, and is limited to common ivies, tormentil, wood anemone and violets. Breeding areas are bracken dominated, with dead bracken leaves littering the ground. Grassy areas often intersperse these habitats.
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Wikipedia