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 Brintesia circe (Fabricius 1775)         Great Banded Grayling                                                                21603-BRACHA-PARPAR - 21603-BRACHA-PARPAR | 5 - B | 22-01-02 | 12:34:17 | SR:-- | Cyan


 A hilltopping species, flying in rocky and grassy areas
 along tracks or margins of forests. Mate location: in the
 morning, males patrol slowly over grasses in search of
 females, while later perching in wait on low branches and
 tree trunks. Basking aggregations have been reported.
 Late in their flight season, females may migrate out of
 their biotopes to wet mesophilic forests seeking nectar.
 In Hatay, open Quercus cerris woods are often preferred.
 Adults rest on rocks and tree trunks, wings closed and    © Martin Gascoigne-Pees   © Martin Gascoigne-Pees  © Christodoulos Makris
 well camouflaged. The pink/violet flowers of Asteraceae,
 Dipsaceae and  Acantholimon sp. (Plumbaginaceae)
 (Bemyamini, 2001c – illustr.) attract adults that may
 also feed on tree sap; feeding has been noted as late                          DGXOW  1 1 1 1  1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8    9   10  11  12
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                       HJJ
 as 21:00. Courtship begins in the air shortly after the                 lar v a
          pupa
 female emerges and specimens may remain  in cop.
 overnight (Tristan Lafranchis, pers. comm. to DB). Mated
 females reject further male advances by vibrating their
 wings.
 %LRORJ\
 )OLJKW  SHULRG  late May-July, 800-2000 m at Hatay   © Christodoulos Makris                    © Christodoulos Makris
 (Atahan et al., 2018: 81, Benyamini, 2001c, Benyamini
 & Tomer, 2002).

 /LIH  KLVWRU\  univoltine. The egg is a slightly flattened
 oval-shape, 0.7-0.8 mm in diameter, semi-matt and
 yellowish-white when ejected in flight, or while the
 female rests on tall grasses. After 2-4 weeks, the egg
 turns to pink and brown before eclosing. L1 feeds by
 day on grasses, sometimes on sedges, and grows to L2-
 L3 before diapausing. The mature larva feeds at night
 and hides at the base of the hostplant or under stones
 during daytime. At maturity, the larva measures 45-50
 mm, with light grey and dark brown longitudinal stripes,
 six of the latter crossing to the front of the head. Prolegs
 are dark brown. The pupa is semi-glossy, light brown   © Christodoulos Makris  © Christodoulos Makris  © M. Gascoigne-Pees  ©       M. Gascoigne-Pees
 and is formed ventral side up in a hollow below ground,
 eclosing in 2-4 weeks (Lafranchis et al., 2015: 694-695;
 SBN, 1987: 249-250; Tolman & Lewington, 1997: 208).
 5HFRUGHG  KRVWSODQWV  Poaceae (Gramineae). On
 25.6.2014, fresh adults were observed flying over
 Bromus japonica, the dominant local LHP within an
 open, stunted oak forest, in S Amanos between Serinyol
 to Arsuz (1170 m) (DB, pers. obs.). Also: Bromus, Lolium
 & Festuca spp. Sometimes Cyperaceae spp.
 'LVWULEXWLRQ
                             © Dubi Benyamini
 TL: Europe (Germany, Verity, 1953). Distributed from
 Portugal, Spain & France across S and C Europe to
 Turkey, the Caucasus, N Iraq and NW Iran. In the Levant,
 B.  circe reaches its southernmost limit in S Hatay,
 Turkey (Hilltopping in Jebel Akdar to 1700 m. Benyamini,
 2001c) and NW Syria, where it was photographed by
 Mudar Salimeh at “A Shaara Mt,” 1300 m in 2018 and
 possibly observed in lower elevations at “En Layloon”
 and “L. Mzeraa”. Latakia mountains & Coastal area NW
 Syria (Syrian Butterflies website, 2019, last approached
 23 November 2020).    © Adam Warecki  © Dubi Benyamini                                         © Christodoulos Makris
 78                                                                                                           67
 2Butterflies of the Levant danaidae satyridae.indd   78  12/30/2021   4:23:40 PM  2Butterflies of the Levant danaidae satyridae.indd   67  12/30/2021   4:23:09 PM
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