''Colias croceus'', clouded yellow, is a small

butterfly Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

of the family

Pieridae The Pieridae are a large family (biology), family of butterflies with about 76 genera containing about 1,100 species, mostly from Afrotropical realm, tropical Africa and Indomalayan realm, tropical Asia with some varieties in the more northern ...

, the yellows and whites.

Subspecies and forms

* ''Colias croceus croceus'' * ''Colias croceus'' f. ''deserticola'' (Verity, 1909) * ''Colias croceus'' f. ''helice'' ( Hübner) * ''Colias croceus'' f. ''helicina'' (Oberthür, 1880) * ''Colias crocea'' f. ''mediterranea'' (Stauder, 1913) All of these forms are usually considered synonyms of ''Colias croceus''.

Distribution and ecology

''Colias croceus'' is one of the most widespread species in Europe. The common clouded yellow's breeding range is

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

and

southern Europe Southern Europe is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, C ...

and eastwards through

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

into the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

, but it occurs throughout much of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

as a summer migrant, in good years individuals reaching

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

. In

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, its range extends into central

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

in the north and barely into

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

in the south; it is not found in

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

.Funet
/ref> This species is primarily an immigrant to the UK, originating from southern Europe and northern Africa.UK Butterflies
/ref> In the UK they can be seen on the south coast almost every year in varying numbers, and regularly breed there. Occurrence in the rest of the UK varies considerably from year to year, but they are increasingly observed as far north as

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...

and

Galloway Galloway ( ; ; ) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the counties of Scotland, historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council areas of Scotland, council area of Dumfries and Gallow ...

. It has also been recorded in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

from the Raven, Co. Wexford, to Belfast, Co. Down. A truly migratory European butterfly, this species is famous for occasional mass migrations and subsequent breeding, which are often referred to in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

as "clouded yellow years". Notable clouded yellow years include 1877, 1947, 1983, 1992, 1994, 1996 and 2000.

Habitat

These butterflies may live in any open area in the countryside, including

downland Downland, chalkland, chalk downs or just downs are areas of open chalk hills, such as the North Downs. This term is used to describe the characteristic landscape in southern England where chalk is exposed at the surface. The name "downs" is deriv ...

, coastal cliffs and fields containing the caterpillar's host plants, at an elevation up to above sea level.

Description

''Colias croceus'' has a

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the opposite wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingsp ...

of . Coombes, Simon
Captain's European Butterfly Guide
The upperside of the wings is golden to orange yellow with a broad black margin on all four wings and a black spot near the centre forewing. Usually these butterflies settle with their wings closed, so the black margin of the uppersides of the wings is hard to see. The underside lacks the black borders and is lighter, with a more greenish tint, particularly on the forewings. In the forewing underside is the same dark spot as on the upperside, but often with a light centre; the hindwing underside has a white centre spot, often with a smaller white or dark dot immediately above it. Sometimes, a row of black dots occurs on the underwings' outer margins, corresponding to where the black border ends on the upperside. Females differ from the males in having yellow spots along the black borders on the upperside. In flight, ''Colias croceus'' is easily identifiable by the intense yellow colouring, much brighter than that of the lemon-yellow male common brimstone which also lacks black markings. Like all ''

Colias ''Colias'' is a genus of butterflies in the family Pieridae. They are often called clouded yellows in the Palearctic and sulphurs (a name also used for other coliadine genera) in North America. The closest living relative is the genus '' Zerene ...

'' species they never open their wings at rest. In about 5% of females, the golden upperside colouration is replaced by a pale cream colour. These females have been distinguished as

form Form is the shape, visual appearance, or configuration of an object. In a wider sense, the form is the way something happens. Form may also refer to: *Form (document), a document (printed or electronic) with spaces in which to write or enter dat ...

''helice''. The pale form ''helice'' does not seem to be distinct, as intermediates exist, and the variation is to some extent related to

humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation (meteorology), precipitation, dew, or fog t ...

during development, with dryer conditions producing paler colouration. These pale forms ''helice'' can be confused with Berger's clouded yellow (''

Colias alfacariensis ''Colias alfacariensis'', Berger's clouded yellow, is a butterfly of the family Pieridae. It was separated from the pale clouded yellow, ''C. hyale'', in 1905. Berger's clouded yellow is a Palearctic species (South and Central Europe, South Rus ...

'') and the rarer pale clouded yellow ('' Colias hyale''). Even the palest ''C. croceus'' tends to have more black on the upperside, however, in particular on the hindwings. Young caterpillars are yellow-green with a black head. Later they become completely dark green, with a white red-spotted lateral line after the third moult. The pupae are green and have a yellow side stripe. This species is similar to '' Colias myrmidone'', '' Colias chrysotheme'', ''

Colias erate ''Colias erate'', commonly known as the eastern pale clouded yellow, is a species of butterfly in the family Pieridae. It is found from south-eastern Europe, through Turkey over central Asia up to Japan and Taiwan. To the south, its range stretch ...

'', '' Colias hyale'', ''

'', '' Colias caucasica'', '' Colias aurorina''.Lepiforum.de
/ref>

Life cycle and larval host plants

Adults fly from March to October. In southern Europe and North Africa they breed continuously throughout the year. Eggs are laid singly on food plant leaves. Usually an extraordinary number of eggs – up to 600 – are laid from a single female. The

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder ...

s grow fast in warm weather, sometimes

pupa A pupa (; : pupae) is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages th ...

ting within a month. Caterpillars have 4 moults in total. The pupa remains attached to a foodplant stem by a silk girdle. Pupation lasts for two or three weeks and in good years there can be as many as three

generation A generation is all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. It also is "the average period, generally considered to be about 20–⁠30 years, during which children are born and grow up, become adults, and b ...

s per year, with adults still on the wing at the beginning of November. Larvae feed on a variety of

leguminous Legumes are plants in the pea family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seeds of such plants. When used as a dry grain for human consumption, the seeds are also called pulses. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consum ...

plants, namely

Faboideae The Faboideae are a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae. An acceptable alternative name for the subfamily is Papilionoideae, or Papilionaceae when this group of plants is treated as a family. This subfamily is widely ...

(''

Trifolium pratense ''Trifolium pratense'' (from Latin prātum, meaning meadow), red clover, is a herbaceous species of flowering plant in the bean family, Fabaceae. It is native to the Old World, but planted and naturalised in many other regions. Description ...

'', ''

Medicago sativa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, and silage, as we ...

'', '' Medicago lappacea'', '' Medicago hispida'', '' Medicago polymorpha'', '' Medicago sulcata'', ''

Vicia ''Vicia'' is a genus of over 240 species of flowering plants that are part of the legume family (Fabaceae), and which are commonly known as vetches. Member species are native to Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Africa. Some other g ...

'', '' Lotus'', ''

Onobrychis __NOTOC__ ''Onobrychis'', the sainfoins, are a genus of Eurasian perennial plant, perennial herbaceous plants of the legume family (Fabaceae). About 206 species are presently accepted. The Flora Europaea lists 23 species of ''Onobrychis''; the m ...

'', ''

Astragalus Astragalus may refer to: * ''Astragalus'' (plant), a large genus of herbs and small shrubs *Astragalus (bone) The talus (; Latin for ankle or ankle bone; : tali), talus bone, astragalus (), or ankle bone is one of the group of foot bones known ...

'', ''

Colutea arborescens ''Colutea arborescens'' is a species of leguminous shrub known by the common name bladder-senna. It is native to Europe and North Africa, but it is known on other continents where it is grown as an ornamental and used in landscaping for erosio ...

'', ''

Hippocrepis ''Hippocrepis'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It includes 34 species native to Europe, northern Africa, and western Asia. Etymology The name "Hippocrepis" comes from the Greek for "horse" () and for "shoe" (): ...

'', and ''

Anthyllis ''Anthyllis'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Fabaceae. This genus contains both herbaceous plant, herbaceous and shrubby species and is distributed in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. The most widespread a ...

'' species). In the UK wild and cultivated

clover Clovers, also called trefoils, are plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution with the highest diversit ...

s (''Trifolium'') and

alfalfa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial plant, perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, ...

(''Medicago sativa'') are favourites; less frequently,

common bird's-foot trefoil ''Lotus corniculatus'' is a flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae. Common names include common bird's-foot trefoil, eggs and bacon, birdsfoot deervetch, and just bird's-foot trefoil (a name also often applied to other ''Lotus'' spp.). It ha ...

'' Lotus corniculatus'' is eaten. Adults feed primarily on nectar of thistles (''

Cirsium ''Cirsium'' is a genus of Perennial plant, perennial and Biennial plant, biennial flowering plants in the Asteraceae, one of several genera known commonly as thistles. They are more precisely known as plume thistles. These differ from other thist ...

'' spp. and ''

Carduus ''Carduus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, and the tribe Cardueae, one of two genera considered to be true thistles, the other being ''Cirsium''. Plants of the genus are known commonly as plumeless thistles.

'' spp.), knapweeds (''

Centaurea ''Centaurea'' () is a genus of over 700 species of herbaceous thistle-like flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Members of the genus are found only north of the equator, mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere; the Middle East and surrounding ...

'' spp.), dandelion (''

Taraxacum ''Taraxacum'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, which consists of species commonly known as dandelions. The scientific and hobby study of the genus is known as taraxacology. The genus has a near-cosmopolitan distribu ...

''), fleabane ('' Pulicaria dysenterica''), marjoram ('' Origanum vulgare''), ragwort (''

Senecio jacobaea ''Jacobaea vulgaris'', syn. ''Senecio jacobaea'', is a very common wild flower in the family Asteraceae that is native to northern Eurasia, usually in dry, open places, and has also been widely distributed as a weed elsewhere. Common names inc ...

''), and vetches (''

'' spp.).

Gallery

(MHNT) Colias croceus f. helice - Wyzyna, Okolice Polska - female dorsal.jpg, ''Colias croceus f. helice'' Pieridae - Colias croceus (male).JPG, Male Clouded yellow (Colias croceus) female Italy.jpg, Female Clouded yellows (Colias croceus) mating Bulgaria.jpg, Mating Colias croceus plate.jpg, Mounted specimen. Male (up) and female (down)

Bibliography

* Asher, Jim; Warren, Martin; Fox, Richard; Harding, Paul; Jeffcoate, Gail & Jeffcoate, Stephen (2001): ''The Millennium Atlas of Butterflies of Britain and Ireland''. Oxford University Press. * *

References

External links

Larvae of North-European Lepidoptera
* Paolo Mazzei, Daniel Morel, Raniero Panfil

* ttp://www.barcodinglife.org/index.php/Taxbrowser_Taxonpage?taxid=70536 ''C. croceus'' imagesat

Consortium for the Barcode of Life The Consortium for the Barcode of Life (CBOL) was an international initiative dedicated to supporting the development of DNA barcoding as a global standard for species identification. CBOL's Secretariat Office is hosted by the National Museum of ...

BMNH
images of named aberrations in the Cockayne collection {{Taxonbar, from=Q520871 croceus Butterflies of Africa Butterflies of Europe Butterflies of Asia Lepidoptera of Cape Verde Butterflies described in 1785 Taxa named by Étienne Louis Geoffroy

Subspecies and forms

Distribution and ecology

Habitat

Description

Life cycle and larval host plants

Gallery

See also

Bibliography

References

External links