UK Butterflies
Building a Community of Responsible Butterfly Enthusiasts in Britain & Ireland
Building a Community of Responsible Butterfly Enthusiasts in Britain & Ireland
Wingspan
♂ 51 - 56 mm, ♀ 54 - 62 mm
Checklist Number
59.013
This butterfly, the largest of our 'browns', is a master of disguise - although fairly conspicuous when in flight, it can mysteriously disappear as soon as it lands, perfectly camouflaged against a background of bare earth and stones, always resting with its wings closed. When it first lands, and when disturbed, the butterfly will raise its forewings for a second or so, revealing dark eye spots that stand out against a beautiful spectrum of browns. This butterfly also has a curious technique for regulating body temperature by leaning its wings at different angles to the sun.
This butterfly is known for the variation between geographically-isolated populations, with 6 named subspecies occurring within the British Isles. This butterfly forms discrete colonies and, while some colonies are inland, the overall distribution of this butterfly would suggest that this is primarily a coastal species, at least in the British Isles. This butterfly is found on the Isle of Man and in the Channel Islands, but is absent from Orkney and Shetland. Colonies vary considerably in size, the smallest containing a couple of dozen and the largest several thousand - especially those found on large expanses of land, such as the heathlands of the New Forest.
This species was first defined in Linnaeus (1758) as shown here (type locality: Europe).
The nominate subspecies is found primarily around the coasts of England, Wales, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.
This subspecies was first defined in Verity (1911a) as shown here and as shown in this plate (type locality: Northern Scotland).
This subspecies is generally distributed around the coast of Scotland, with the exception of the western Isles which is populated by the subspecies atlantica. It differs from the subspecies semele as follows:
Dennis & Shreeve (1996) make an interesting assertion when listing scota: "= atlantica".
Original (French)
Taille très réduite (envergure : 45-50 mill., au lieu de 48-60 mill.; dessins fauves plutôt étendus, mais très pâles, presque jaunes; revers des postérieures extrèmement obscurs et sans bande blanche transversale; la marbrure est d'un noir profond et extrêmement abondante, ce qui donne à l'aile un aspect complètement différent de celui du type.
Habitat. - Ecosse septentrionale. Types : coll. Vérity.
Translation
Size much reduced (wingspan: 45-50 mm, instead of 48-60 mm); fulvous markings rather extensive but very pale, almost yellow; underside of the hindwings extremely dark and lacking a white transverse band; the marbling is deep black and very copious, giving the wings a completely different look from that of the type.
Habitat - Northern Scotland. Types: Vérity collection.
This subspecies was first defined in Thompson (1944) as shown here (type locality: Creuddyn Peninsula, Caernarvonshire, North Wales).
This subspecies is confined to the western side of the Great Ormes Head near Llandudno in Denbighshire, North Wales. It differs from the subspecies semele as follows:
♂. Strikingly smaller than any other British race of semele, those in my series of over 100 specimens, collected at random, averaging only 47.7 mm.
The coloration is more uniform than in typical semele, with the pale areas more ochreous. The forewing spots are smaller than in other races, with the lower of the two frequently absent, and totally obsolete specimens are not very rare. The underside has the coloration duller and less contrasting than in the type, with the white portions of the hindwings tinged with ochreous. The tendency to obsolescence is even more striking on the under surface than on the upperside.
♀. Similarly smaller than other races, those in my series averaging 51.1 mm. The comparatively unicolorous tendency is the same as in the ♂; but obsolescence is less marked, although the spots are smaller than in normal specimens. The underside presents peculiarities similar to ♂♂ of this race.
Habitat: Creuddyn Peninsula, Carnarvonshire.
Types: ♂, ♀, 2nd July 1941, in my collection.
E. semele ssp. thyone flies earlier than is usual with other races, being on the wing towards the third week in June, and disappearing by the end of July.
This subspecies was first defined in Harrison (1946a) as shown here (type locality: Vatersay, Outer Hebrides, Scotland).
This subspecies is found in the western isles of Scotland and the adjacent mainland, including the Outer Hebrides, South Ebudes and the adjacent regions in Argyllshire, Mid Ebudes, West Inverness-shire, North Ebudes, West Ross and West Sutherland. Dennis (1977) says "It is certain that subspecies atlantica ... is simply an extension of the general description of subspecies scota. Subspecies atlantica differs from subspecies semele as follows:
Well distributed on the sand dunes on Coll and Gunna. The form, which agrees racially with examples collected on Sandray, Pabbay, and Vatersay in the Outer Island and in Rhum and elsewhere in the Inner Hebrides, is separable from mainland examples by its brighter and more contrasty colouration. In particular, the under surface of the wings is blacker and the yellow portions more orange. This insect may be known as subsp. atlantica, the type, in my possession, originating in Vatersay.
This subspecies was first defined in Lattin (1952) as shown here (type locality: County Clare, Ireland).
This subspecies is found in Ireland in the limestone pavements of the Burren in Clare and South-east Galway. Aldwell & Smyth (2015) note that "In Donegal hibernica is present but several photographs show forms which resemble clarensis".
It differs from the subspecies semele as follows:
A series of Irish specimens from Co. Clare is different at the first glance from all the other races of this species by reason of its very divergent males. Irish males and females on the whole are richer and redder brown on the upperside, and on the underside have the black lines deeper black, and look richer in general, than English ones. But in ssp. clarensis the ground colour of the upper side is relatively light with a quite apparent incline to grey, contrary to insects from England and Germany which show a ground colour of a more pronounced brown; the very pallid marginal band is so much dusted with dark scaling that it is very ill defined from the dark proximal part of the wing. The hindwings are in general altered in a similar way, only the marginal band is more distinctly defined and shows the brick-red triangular spots on its distal part strikingly small and pale. But the most apparent characteristic of this subspecies is the great reduction of the androconial spot on the forewings of the male, this spot being relatively large in the typical form, extending from the analis to the end of the cell as an oblique band. In the Irish specimens from Co. Clare this band is confined to a few remains in the region of the lower cell border, so that at first sight one gains the impression that the androconial spot is entirely lacking. The under side has also a paler ground colour and therefore appears very light, this impression being enhanced by the broad milky white distal edging of the postmedian line, which is only relatively little dusted with dark scales. The female is differentiated more or less the same as the male, yet the difference is not so sharp because the androconial difference is lacking; from its neighbouring English and Continental populations it can be best distinguished by its strikingly greyish ground colour.
Holotype: 1 ♂, Co. Clare, 18.7.1926. L. A. E. Sabine coll.
Allotype: 1 ♀, Co. Clare, 19.7.1926. L. A. E. Sabine coll.
Paratypes: 1 ♂ 3 ♀♀, Co. Clare, 18/19.7.1926. L. A. E. Sabine coll.
All these specimens are contained in the collection Pfeiffer, München.
[In the Zoological Museum at Tring we have 2 ♂♂ and 2 ♀♀ from Co. Clare. The androconial streak, which Dr. de Lattin stresses, varies a good deal in size in both English and Irish males from other counties, but on the average it appears to be about the same in both. In the 2 Clare ♂♂ at Tring it is greyer and less conspicuous, but not actually smaller. These two ♂♂ are certainly greyer on the upper side than any others from the British Isles, and the under side is pale. The ♀♀ can be matched by aberrant examples from other places, but if all Clare examples are alike they cannot be matched by a series from elsewhere. I think Dr. de Lattin is dealing with a local race peculiar to the limestone Burren and associated with the pale ground there, which may be considered a subspecies. - E.A.C.]
This subspecies was first defined in Howarth (1971b) (type locality: Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland).
This subspecies is found throughout Ireland, primarily in coastal areas, with the exception of the Burren in Clare and South-east Galway, where the subspecies clarensis is found. Dennis (1977) says "This subspecies is clearly similar to the Scottish race [ssp. scota], and only differs in its warmer brown tone and the unicoloured rather than variegated brown of the hindwing margins". Subspecies hibernica differs from the subspecies semele as follows:
The males have the upperside ground colour a warm brown with the paler markings more rufous in tint compared with English examples (ssp. anglorum Verity [Verity (1924)]). On the underside the dark markings are more chocolate-brown and the bases of the hindwings are darker.
The females differ in the same manner as the males and on the upperside of the forewing often possess the reddish suffusion in spaces 2 and 3 which sometimes extends into the discoidal cell. In several respects this newly described subspecies is rather similar to ssp. scota Verity, as one would expect, but it is generally a warmer brown and has the margins of the hindwings a deep unicolorous brown compared with the more variegated margins of scota, which have a sharply defined black inner edge.
Holotype ♂: Kerry, Killarney, P. Bouchard 64.69 (pl. 1 fig. 5).
Allotype ♀: Same data as holotype (pl. 1 fig. 6).
[Paratypes listed].
| Family: | Nymphalidae | Rafinesque, 1815 |
| Subfamily: | Satyrinae | Boisduval, 1833 |
| Tribe: | Satyrini | Boisduval, 1833 |
| Genus: | Hipparchia | Fabricius, 1807 |
| Subgenus: | Parahipparchia | Kudrna, 1977 |
| Species: | semele | (Linnaeus, 1758) |
| Subspecies: | semele | (Linnaeus, 1758) |
| scota | (Verity, 1911) | |
| thyone | (Thompson, 1944) | |
| atlantica | (Harrison, 1946) | |
| clarensis | Lattin, 1952 | |
| hibernica | Howarth, 1971 |
Description to be completed.
The distribution data (2000-2009) has been made available through the generosity of Butterfly Conservation and any subspecies distribution is taken from Riley (2007). Click here to see the distribution of this species together with site information overlaid.
This butterfly has suffered severe declines over the long term and is therefore a priority species for conservation efforts.
The table below shows the occurrence (distribution) and abundance (population) trends, using information from The State of the UK's Butterflies 2015 (Fox, 2015). Any UK BAP status is taken from the UK Biodiversity Action Plan (UK BAP) (2007 review).
1976-2014 (%) | 1976-2014 (%) | 2005-2014 (%) | 2005-2014 (%) | Click here to access the Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP). |  -62 | -58 |  -18 |  +10 |
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Adults generally emerge at the start of July, peaking at the end of the month. The colonies found on the Great Ormes Head in north Wales, where individuals are much smaller in size than other colonies and are a distinct subspecies, emerge much earlier than at other sites - often at the beginning of June. This butterfly has one generation each year.
The male is more-often seen than the female and is territorial, usually perching on the bare ground that typifies their habitat or, occasionally, on a tree trunk or boulder. The male flies up to investigate any passing object and, if he encounters a female, the two will land on the ground. The male lands immediately behind her before moving around to face her head on. An unreceptive female will flutter her wings while a virgin female will remain still, encouraging the male to perform an elaborate courtship.
He starts by flicking his wings upward to reveal the orange patches found on the underside of the forewings. He then flicks his wings open and shut for a short time before bowing to the female and slowly bringing his wings together, when the female's antennae are brought together over the sex brands found on the male's forewings, as the male returns to an upright position. The scent scales from the sex brands allows the male to seduce the female, allowing him to move behind the female who is then mated.
Unlike the territorial male, the female is most-often seen when egg-laying. Both sexes take nectar and will feed from a variety of plants, including Bell Heather, Thistle, Bramble and also Buddleia if found in the vicinity.
Adults feed primarily on bird's-foot-trefoils (Lotus spp.), brambles (Rubus spp.), Buddleja (Buddleja spp.), heathers (Calluna and Erica spp.), Red Clover (Trifolium pratense), thistles (Carduus spp. and Cirsium spp.), Wild Marjoram (Origanum vulgare) and Wild Thyme (Thymus polytrichus).
Eggs are laid singly on the foodplant, or on nearby ground debris. Isolated plants, surrounded by patches of bare ground, are preferred. Eggs are white when first laid, but gradually turn pale yellow in colour. Unlike the eggs of related species, the egg of a Grayling retains a uniform colour and does not develop brown blotches as it develops. This stage lasts between 2 and 3 weeks.
"Eggs laid on August 11th, 1891, hatched on August 28th, remaining seventeen days in the egg state. Eggs deposited in the middle of September, 1894, hatched on October 1st, and others deposited during the middle of September, 1910, hatched early in October. The egg is 0.80 mm. high, of an ovate spheroid form, the apex flattened; there are about twenty-eight longitudinal ribs, which are united and reticulated on the crown; the micropyle is finely punctured; the base is very finely granulated and rounded; the ribs are somewhat irregularly formed, and occasionally become broken and diverge near the summit. The colour is milk-white and turns a pale lilac-grey before hatching." - Frohawk (1924)
The larva feeds on the tender tips of grass blades after emerging and eventually hibernates while still small, in the 3rd instar, at the base of a grass tussock. Feeding resumes in the spring and mature larvae are nocturnal, retreating deep within the base of grass tussocks during the day. There are 5 instars in total.
The primary larval foodplants are Bristle Bent (Agrostis curtisii), Early Hair-grass (Aira praecox), Marram (Ammophila arenaria), Red Fescue (Festuca rubra) and Sheep's-fescue (Festuca ovina). Tufted Hair-grass (Deschampsia cespitosa) is also used.
"The young larva emerges from the egg by eating away part of the side. Directly after emergence the larva measures 1.6 mm. long. The head is large, with a granular surface; the eye spots are black with brown centres; surrounding the mouth are a number of white hairs curving downwards, and two others extremely short and curved on each lobe of the crown. The body is rather stoutish anteriorly and attenuated posteriorly, deeply wrinkled transversely and very slightly granulated. The ground colour, including the head, is pale primrose or creamy-yellow, with very faint medio-dorsal and sub-dorsal longitudinal lines of an ochreous-buff colour, and a broad super-spiracular drab-coloured band, but indistinctly defined, as the edges fade into the ground colour. There are eight longitudinal rows of small black warts, four on each side; each row consists of a single wart on each segment, except the sub-spiracular series, which has two below each spiracle; two rows are sub-dorsal and one super-spiracular; each wart emits a very minute whitish curved spine; on the ventral surface, including the legs and claspers, are other straight and finely pointed spines. The spiracles are prominent and shining black; the first and last are very large. The anal segment bears six rather long, blunt white hairs with black bases, all directed backwards. Before first moult it measures 4.2 mm. long, of a pale greenish-ochreous colour. On each segment from the fourth to eleventh inclusive is an elongated dark purplish-brown mark. Those on the anterior segments are pale and indistinct; there are three sub-dorsal, broken, faint lines, and a stripe of slightly darker shade than the ground colour, outlined with dark brown; then a fine pale spiracular line and a cream-coloured lateral stripe bordered below by brown. The ventral surface, legs and claspers are pale ochreous-green. The head is pale ochreous, dotted with brown and with dark brown eye spots. Several larvae which hatched middle of August, 1891, were turned down on a bed of wild thyme, mixed with various small plants and grasses; upon examining the bed on September 5th some of the larvae were found feeding on fescue grass, one having moulted. They appear to thrive best on Poa annua and other soft-bladed grasses, which they very readily feed upon. They are very sluggish in movement, and rest on the edge of the grass blade in a straight attitude, but fall to the ground at any slight disturbance." - Frohawk (1924)
"The first moult (from eggs laid in September, 1910) occurred about the middle of October. After the first moult it measures 6.3 mm. long. The ground colour is pale ochreous-buff, with a pale olive-ochreous, medio-dorsal, longitudinal stripe, broken up by a series of dark brown marks from the fourth to eleventh segments inclusive, as in the previous stage; another stripe of slightly darker hue extends down the side, commencing on the head and terminating on the anal point; this is edged with brown. Then follows a milk-white, lateral, longitudinal band, bordered below by a brown band; the ventral surface, legs and claspers, pale greyish-buff. Other faint, fine sienna-brown lines run down the sub-dorsal surface. The head is granular and faintly banded with brown specks. Both head and body are sprinkled with minute club-shaped points, mostly with dark wart-like bases; these develop into short hairs on the face and are rather longer on the anal segment." - Frohawk (1924)
"Several moulted the second time during the first week of December, 1910. After second moult (about seven weeks after) it measures 9.5 mm. long. It is similar to the previous stage in the general pattern and colouration, but all the markings are more clearly defined. The ground colour has a yellowish tinge, and in some the anterior segments are slightly tinged with green. The sub-dorsal stripe is light olive; both this and the medio-dorsal stripe are very finely outlined with dark brown, and bordered each side by a fine whitish line, which is likewise outlined with lighter ochreous-brown. The lateral stripe is usually cream-white, but in some specimens it is tinged with lemon-yellow. Hibernation takes place after the second moult, but they feed during the winter when the temperature is mild, both by day and night, only remaining in a torpid state during cold weather. When disturbed they fall to the ground." - Frohawk (1924)
"The third moult of about three dozen larvae occurred from March 27th, 1892, until the end of the first week of April. After the third moult (a few days after) it measures 11 mm. in length. The head is large, wider than the body, of a pale ochreous colour, with six bands composed of minute black dots. These run continuous with the body stripes. The body gradually tapers to the anal points. The ground colour is a clear creamy-buff, with all the markings sharply defined; the medio-dorsal and super-spiracular stripes are richly decorated with black streaks along the edges. On April 25th, 1892, the majority of the larvae were 12.7 mm. long, the ground colour of a clear pinkish-buff and velvety. The medio-dorsal stripe is variegated with alternating velvet black and yellowish-drab upon each segment, the black occupying the anterior half. This checkered stripe is bordered by a broad creamy band, which is intersected by extremely fine rose-coloured striations; then follows a pale olive sub-dorsal stripe bordered by a yellowish band, also striated with rose colour; the super-spiracular stripe is olive-drab, finely outlined with black on the upper edge, increasing in depth on the sixth to tenth segments inclusive, and bordered below by a very fine whitish line; the spiracular band is pinkish-buff, but varying in different individuals. In the centre of this band are placed the intensely black spiracles, which are encircled with a light ring. The lateral line is creamy-white, bordered below by dark olive and greyish-ochreous, which colour extends over the ventral surface, legs and claspers. About sunset they crawl up the grass stems and feed during the night, and retreat to their resting-places, low down, at daybreak." - Frohawk (1924)
"The first larva moulted fourth and last time on April 25th, 1892; others moulted during May. After the fourth moult, fully grown, it varies in length from 28 mm. to 31 mm. The head is considerably smaller than the first segment. The body is attenuated, slightly so towards the head, but much more posteriorly. The anal segment terminates in a pair of sharp points. The general ground colour is a pale yellow, inclining to a lemon tinge. The medio-dorsal, sub-dorsal and super-spiracular stripes are pale drab, reticulated with wavy black lines. The spiracular band is pale ochreous, bordered above by wavy coppery-coloured streaks, and blackish specks in places forming short streaks. The two colours produce an irregular mottled line. The band is outlined below with blackish specks. Between this band and the super-spiracular stripe is a whitish line, and a much broader and duller lateral stripe bordered below with black frecklings. The spiracles are dark brown with rust-coloured apertures. The ventral surface, including the legs and claspers, is dull ochreous-grey. The medio-dorsal and super-spiracular stripes are richly marked with black, as in the previous stage. The spaces between the dorsal stripes are intersected with claret-red striations, varying in different individuals; in some they are much paler and duller, inclining to rust-red. The head is buff, with darker buff bands (continuous with the body stripes), which are intensified by numerous black specks. The surface is granular and covered with hairs similar to the body; the eye spots are black. The entire surface of the body is very densely clothed with most minute points, and also densely sprinkled with tiny spine-like hairs of a pale brown colour with bulbous bases. These together with the points give the surface a very fine granular texture. The larvae commenced pupating during the first week of June." - Frohawk (1924)
The pupa is formed, unattached, in a cell in the earth, just beneath the surface of the soil. This stage lasts around 4 weeks.
"The pupa measures from 15 mm. to 17 mm. long. The head is rounded and rather prominent. The thorax is full and rounded dorsally and sunken at the meta-thorax and first abdominal segment; the abdomen is swollen and largest at the third segment, it then gradually diminishes to the anal segment, which terminates in a laterally ridged cremaster without any hooks. The ventral surface is but slightly curved from the head to apex of wings; the abdomen is more so. The thoracic spiracle has a curious projecting ear-like ridge, which is black and rough in texture; the remaining spiracles are rather prominent. The colour is a rich rust-red or burnt sienna, fading into rich amber on the wings and limbs. It is without markings. During June the larva burrows just below the surface of the ground to about 12 mm. deep, and there forms a cell and spins a little silk on the walls, binding the grains of earth together, forming a comparatively smooth surface to the interior, and therein pupates without any attachment. It remains in the pupal state about one month." - Frohawk (1924)
The following links provide additional information on this butterfly.
