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LEPIDOPTERA

Gonepteryx rhamni
Gonepteryx rhamni (Linnaeus, 1758)

• TYPE LOCALITY. Sweden.
• RANGE . From N. Africa across the whole of Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus and Transcaucasia, W. and S. Siberia to Transbaikalia.
• DISTRIBUTION AND VARIATION. The nominate form is distributed in the N. and central European parts. Other known subspecies are as follows: ssp. transiens Verity, 1913 - the S. European part, the Caucasus Major, W. Siberia; ssp. папа Wnukowsky, 1935 - the Altai Mts., S. Siberia, Transbaikalia; ssp. meridionalis Rober, 1907 - the Armenian Highland; ssp. miljanowskii Nekrutenko, 1966 - the Caucasus Minor; ssp. tianschanica Nekrutenko, 1970 - N. Tian-Shan and Dzhungarsky Alatau.
•TAXONOMIC NOTES. Some characters of the hidden pattern visible only in UV-light suggest that each of the last three taxa may possibly represent a separate species; however, additional studies are required to arrive at a final conclusion.
• HABITAT AND BIOLOGY. Forest edges and clearings, road sides in the zones of mixed and deciduous forests; in the mountains up to 2,000-2,500 m a.s.l. Flight period: July-September and again, after hibernation, April-May. Host plants (Nekrutenko, 1990): Rhamnus and Frangula.
• SIMILAR SPECIES. G. farinosa: UPS pale yellow with characteristic loose, "farinaceous" scaling, best visible at higher magnifications; HW dorsum strongly dentate. G. aspasia: UPF ground colour brighter than UPH; FW apex strongly produced.

Photo and text: Guide to the BUTTERFLIES OF RUSSIA and adjacent territories Volume 1. PENSOFT, Sofia - Moscow. 1997