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LEPIDOPTERA

Euphydryas iduna (Dalman, 1816)
Euphydryas iduna (Dalman, 1816)

• TYPE LOCALITY. Sweden.

• RANGE. Polar and/or mountain tundra of Europe and Siberia to Mongolia in the south.

• DISTRIBUTION AND VARIATION. The nominotypical subspecies inhabits the Polar tundra of the European part and Siberia: the ssp. inexpectata (Sheljuzhko, 1934) occurs in the Caucasus Major: the ssp. alferakyi Korshunov, 1996 is known to occur in the Far East: the ssp. semenovi Korshunov et Ivonin, 1996 has been described from the Kuznetsky Alatau Mts.: the ssp. sajana Higgins, 1950 (= sajana Gaede, 1932, nomen nudum) from the Altais and Sayan. Possibly sajana is a distinct species since information is available that, in the Altais, it flies together with the ssp. semenovi.

HABITATS AND BIOLOGY. Plains and mountain tundra with bushes of Betula nana, different kinds of swampy woodland and meadow. Flight period: June to July. Young larval instars staying in small groups in cobweb nests on runt willows or birches. After hibernation, larvae switching to Plantago, Veronica, Vaccinium (Henriksen & Kreutzer, 1982).

 

Photo and text: Guide to the BUTTERFLIES OF RUSSIA and adjacent territories Volume 2. PENSOFT, Sofia - Moscow. 2000