The silver-washed fritillary is a large orange butterfly of Europe and Asia, named for the silvery streaks across the green underside of its hind wings. It does not live in North America, where its relatives include familiar fritillaries such as the great spangled fritillary.
Appearance
- Appearance
- Wingspan is about 2.1–2.8 in (54–70 mm). The upperside is deep orange with black spots. The underside of the hind wing is green with silvery bands. Males are a bit smaller, have more pointed forewings, and carry dark streaks of along the forewing veins. In many European populations, some females are a grayish form with a greenish sheen, called valesina, instead of the usual tawny orange.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Sunny open woodland
- Woodland edges and clearings
- Range
- Widespread across temperate Eurasia, from Algeria and Europe east to Japan. Not found in the Americas.
- Preferred conditions
- In Europe, it prefers thin, sunny deciduous woods, especially oak woods, but also uses conifer woods.
Behavior
- Diet
- In Europe, adults sip nectar from brambles, thistles, and knapweeds, and also feed on left by aphids.
- Activity
- A strong flier that can glide above the treetops. In Europe, adults are on the wing in summer, from about June to September.
Life cycle
- Reproduction
- Unusually, females don't lay eggs on violets themselves. In Europe, they tuck them into bark crevices about 3–6 ft (1–2 m) up a tree trunk near violet patches.
- Larva
- The caterpillar hatches in late summer and goes straight into hibernation. In spring it climbs down and feeds, mostly at night, on violets near the tree base. It is blackish brown with yellow stripes and long reddish spines.
- Caterpillar food plants
- Caterpillars eat violets; in Europe the main host is common dog violet.
Conservation
- Conservation
- In the UK it declined in the 1970s and 1980s but has since returned to many of its old sites.
Culture and stories
- Culture and stories
- The species name paphia comes from Aphrodite Paphia, a title of the Greek goddess Aphrodite.
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