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Pararge aegeria (Linnaeus, 1758) Speckled Wood

Strongly favours dappled sunlight in light woodland, often
near watercourses or other wet areas where flight appears
aimless and erratic when not being territorial. However,
males are usually territorial and vigorously defend their
territory (a chosen perch in a patch of sunlight) and are
often seen in spiralling flights, intercepting intruders to their
territory. Occasionally forms colonies, and communal night-
time roosting has been reported. Head to head courtship
involves the enveloping of the female antennae between
the male’s forewings, where contact is made with the male © Peter Russell © Wolfgang Wagner © Wolfgang Wagner © Wolfgang Wagner
androconia; mating occurs at treetop level (Thomas &
Lewington, 2014: 236). Attracted to light traps (Bálint et al.,
2016). Not recorded between 2013-2021 and regarded as DGXOW 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12
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HJJ
locally extinct at mid-elevations of Mt Hermon, due to cow lar v a
pupa
overgrazing since the late 1990s. Two observations in 28
May 2021 and 4 June 2021 both near Mt Hermon ski lower
station at 1600 m are possibly new re-establishment of the
Speckled Wood from lower biotopes in N Jordan valley and
close-by Lebanese populations. Ranked Endangered (EN) in
the Israeli Red list of butterflies due to its small geographic © Wolfgang Wagner © Wolfgang Wagner © Wolfgang Wagner
range (Renan et al., 2022 (in prep.)).
%LRORJ\
)OLJKW SHULRG Mid February to September in Israel’s N
Jordan Valley; Late May to late July, 1500--2050 m in Mt
Hermon; Year round, emerging earlier at lower elevations
in Lebanon, found from the coast to 1500 m (Larsen, 1974:
141); Year round, redused activity Nov.-Feb. in Cyprus, sl to
Troodos summit at 1950 m (Makris, 2003: 258); March-
Oct. in Hatay, sl to 2000 m (Atahan et al., 2018: 101); Early
April to September around Aammiq area in the Beqaa Valley
of E Lebanon (Beale & Sprenger, 2006). © Wolfgang Wagner © Wolfgang Wagner © Dubi Benyamini
/LIH KLVWRU\ bivoltine to polyvoltine, depending on elevation.
Eggs are laid singly, on or beneath blades of grass. Shreeve
(1986) stated, ’females distribute eggs over a large area
with extended flights after laying each egg…’. The egg is
rounded, 0.8 mm in height, porcelain white when laid and
with a finely textured surface. L1 hatches after 7-10 days
and eats the eggshell. L1 is white with a glossy black head,
2.5 mm in length and hairy. At maturity, L5 is 28 mm long,
green with longitudinal yellowish and dark stripes and short
hairs. The pupa, which is suspended from the hostplant, is
12.5 mm in length, pale green to brown-green and hatches © Dubi Benyamini
after 10-14 days. In the Levant, as in Europe, the species
may overwinter in either the larval or the pupal stages © Peter Russell
(Warecki, 2010: 123; Lafranchis et al., 2015: 563).
5HFRUGHG KRVWSODQWV Poaceae (Gramineae) –
Brachypodium pinnatum, Cynodon dactylon, Dactylis
glomerata, Avena, Elymus & Poa spp.
'LVWULEXWLRQ
TL: S Europe and N Africa. Widely distributed from N Africa
to Europe and Russia, Caucasia, Turkey, Cyprus, Syria,
Lebanon, Israel (reaching its southernmost distribution
point in the upper Jordan Valley), and C Asia. (Absent from
Jordan and Sinai.) The nominotypical ssp. flies in the Levant.
© Albert Keshet © Peter Russell © Adrian Hoskins
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