Butterfly pestrus - description, habitat, species

In the world there are 147 varieties of butterflies, common in the Australian continent, in Africa and Eurasia. In Russia, there are ten species. Insects of medium size, wings of a dark color with white spots on the upper and a closed cell on the lower.

Morphological description of the species

The meadowsweet pestrus butterfly belongs to the nymphalidae family. This species is also called chernushka, the tapeworm of the crib and the common pestle. The body of the butterfly is neat, narrow, the head is large. The length of the front wings ranges from 18 to 29 mm, and the shape is elongated. The back, on the contrary, is wide and wavy. The upper side of the wing is dark in color and the inside is brownish-red, spotty. The antennae are small with a mace at the tip.

Varieties

There are three species that have common characteristics with the common pestle:

• bluish ribbon;
• Small Ribbon (Camilla);
• Sappho or dark-winged pestle.

The small ribbon is widespread in Primorye, Korea, Europe, Japan, the Caucasus and Turkey. Its size with a wingspan reaches 45-60 mm. The color is the same with a white band, only at the base of the wing it casts blue. It lives in forests and on the banks of rivers, sometimes lives in the mountains at an altitude of 1600 m. Camilla grows in two generations. First in June and July, and then in August and September.

The third species inhabits the Balkan Peninsula, Europe in the center and east, the lower mountains of the Carpathians, not exceeding 500 m. Previously, Sappho lived in Belarus and Poland, but now it has disappeared. The life span is three months - from June to August. You can see them on the banks of rivers, clearings and forests. They feed on a rank plant, pupate at the end of May. They differ from pestrus in two rows in the rear wing.

How does the common pestle butterfly live

Common pestle lives near water bodies: rivers, lakes, streams. Also common in forests, shrubs and slopes of ravines. But the presence of a nearby reservoir plays an important role. The diet of butterflies includes not only nectar, but also water and partially excrement.

Since butterflies are daytime, they are active in the daytime, and sleep at night, hiding in the foliage or among the branches of the bush. Males differ from females in that they divide the territory in which they live and protect it from other representatives of their species. Female individuals, on the contrary, are cautious, timid, and spend a lot of time hiding in trees.

Under good conditions, butterflies can develop in two generations. The former are active in May-July, and the latter in July-August. But under ordinary conditions, only one generation develops at the beginning of summer.

Propagation and development of Neptis rivularis

Plants such as Volzhanka vulgaris, Volunteer Spirea and Meadowsweet are suitable for laying eggs. After mating, the female lays a spherical egg about 1.2 mm in size from the outside of the leaf.

After a week, a caterpillar 2.5 mm long appears. The color is reddish with light stripes on the back and sides. The head of the caterpillar is large, the whole body is covered with hairs, and the back is with several growths.

For wintering the caterpillar needs a new shelter. It will be a large sheet in which it will be completely wrapped and will cover all openings. This happens in the middle of autumn and only next spring she will leave her house.

Before the pupation stage, the caterpillar reaches 20 mm, ceases to eat. The abdomen attaches itself upside down to the branch and the pupal phase begins. This period lasts about a week.

Species of Neptis rivularis or meadowsweet pestle is listed in the Red Book not only in Crimea, but even in Poland. The population of this species of butterfly is reduced annually due to spraying of insecticides. The forest is treated against harmful insects, but at the same time ordinary ones die.

Video: Butterfly Butterfly (Neptis sappho)