Fluturat e Shqipërisë
Butterflies of Albania

Sylvain Cuvelier =
Anila Paparisto =

Last update: 05.viii.2023

Brintesia circe / Great Banded Grayling
Brintesia
Nymphalidae - Satyrinae

Brintesia circe (Fabricius, 1775). TL: Germany.

1a. Brintesia circe, distribution map. Historical data ; Additional data from the 2018 update ; New observations since the 2018 update.
1b. Brintesia circe copula. Mali i Thatë, Albania (© Sylvain Cuvelier)
1c. Brintesia circe copula. North of Mali i Korabit, Albania (© Sylvain Cuvelier)
1d. Brintesia circe ♂ underside. Mali i Tomorit, Albania (© Anila Paparisto)

Description
♂♂
Large butterfly. Fw: 33-36 mm.
Ups: black gc, broad white postdiscal band.
Upf: black apical ocellus.
Uns: black grey gc, broad white postdiscal band on unh less regular.
♀♀
Larger, otherwise similar.

Similar species

Hipparchia fagi Upf: suffused, pale yellowish pd band. Upf: external side pd band not dentated. Uph: suffused, pale pd band. Unf: pale yellowish pd band. Unh: no short white postbasal band. Unh: mottled white pd band. Hipparchia syriaca Upf: suffused, pale yellowish pd band. Upf: external side pd band not dentated. Uph: suffused, pale pd band. Unf: pale yellowish pd band Unh: no short white postbasal band. Unh: mottled white pd band.

Life cycle
Adults: a single continuous generation from June to early September.
Egg: short stage.
Caterpillar: overwintering as young larva.
Pupa: short stage.

Habitat
Brintesia circe inhabits a wide variety of dry stony grasslands with scattered bushes and trees, also found in light woodland and forest edges from lowland up to 1600 m a.s.l.
Spatial requirement modest, population density can be high.

Foodplants
Caterpillars feed mainly on Festuca sp., Lolium perenne, Sesleria sp. and Anthoxanthum odoratum, also mentioned are Arrhenatherum elatius, Brachypodium sp., Bromus sp., Carex sp., Danthonia decumbens, Deschampsia cespitosa, Elymus repens, Holcus lanatus and Poa pratensis.
Butterflies feed on a variety of high flowers.

Distribution
Albania: widespread.
Balkan: AL - BG - BIH - GR - HR - NMK - MNE - RKS - RO - SLO - SRB
Europe: IB - IT - ALP - BAL - NWE* - UK - SCA - EEU*
Asia Minor, Near East*, Transcaucasia, Caucasus and further east.

Conservation status
Brintesia circe is not endangered.
Albanian Red List: LC.
IUCN Red List, category at the Mediterranean level: LC.

Useful links
Pyrgus.de
Lepiforum
Euroleps

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