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Hipparchia senthes / Balkan Grayling
Senthesi
Nymphalidae - Satyrinae
Hipparchia senthes (Frühstorfer, 1908). TL: Oros Taygetos, Greece.
 
1a. Hipparchia senthes, distribution map.  Historical data ;  Additional data from the 2018 update ;  New observations since the 2018 update.
1b. Hipparchia senthes ♂ underside. Greece (© Sylvain Cuvelier)
1c. Habitat of Hipparchia senthes. Greece (© Sylvain Cuvelier)
Description
♂♂
Medium size butterfly. Fw: 26-27 mm.
Ups: brown gc, broken and sometimes poorly defined yellowish-orange postdiscal bands with suffusion along the veins.
Upf: sex-brand, ocelli in s2 and s5.
Uph: small ocellus in s2.
Unf: orange gc with mottled grey-brown margin and costa, two ocelli in outer margin.
Unh: marbled light and dark grey, basal area followed by white or pale postdiscal band.
♀♀
Larger.
Ups: larger pale yellowish-orange postdiscal bands.
Unh: more uniformly mottled pattern, poorly or absent pale postdiscal band.
Similar species
Three extremely variable and similar species.
Identification based on external morphology is impossible.
Identification based on ♂♂ and ♀♀ genitalia is strongly recommended (url)
Hipparchia semele
Hipparchia volgensis
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Life cycle
Adults: single generation from mid-May to September.
Egg: short stage.
Caterpillar: overwintering.
Pupa: short stage.
Habitat
Hipparchia senthes inhabits hot and dry rocky places with open soil and scattered bushes from lowland up to 1200 m a.s.l.
Spatial requrement modest, population density can be high.
Foodplants
Caterpillars feed on Brachypodium retusum and probably other grasses.
Butterflies feed on a large variety of flowers, mudd-pudling, often resting on stones or tree trunks.
Distribution
Albania: very local based on genitalia confirmed records. Possible confusion with H. semele and H. volgensis (more genitalia confirmed data needed)
Balkan: AL - BG - BIH - GR - HR - NMK - MNE - RKS - RO - SLO - SRB
Europe: IB - IT - ALP - BAL - NWE - UK - SCA - EEU
Asia Minor and Near East*.
Conservation status
Hipparchia senthes is not endangered.
Albanian Red List: DD.
IUCN Red List, category at the Mediterranean level: LC.
Useful links
Pyrgus.de
Lepiforum
Euroleps
(url) Coutsis J. 1983. Description of the female genitalia of Hipparchia fagi Scopoli, Hipparchia semele Linnaeus (Satyridae) and their related taxa. — The Journal of Research on the Lepidoptera 22(3): 161–203.
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