''Pyronia bathseba'', the Spanish gatekeeper, is a

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprises ...

of the family

Nymphalidae The Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species have a re ...

. It is found on the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...

and in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria ...

, and

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...

. A similar gatekeeper species is ''

Pyronia tithonus ''Pyronia'' is a genus of butterflies from the subfamily Satyrinae in the family Nymphalidae. Description These butterflies have vestigial forelegs that cannot be used for walking. Male forelegs exhibit 2 tarsal joints, while female forelegs h ...

'', which is found in northern Europe.

Description

The

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

is 18–19 mm. The butterfly is on wing from May to July depending on the location. Pyronia bathseba MHNT CUT 2013 3 32 Villegailhenc male dorsal.jpg, Male Pyronia bathseba MHNT CUT 2013 3 32 Villegailhenc male ventral.jpg, Male underside Pyronia bathseba MHNT CUT 2013 3 32 Muret female dorsal.jpg, Female Pyronia bathseba MHNT CUT 2013 3 32 Muret female ventral.jpg, Female underside

Biology

The larvae feed on Poaceae species, mainly ''

Brachypodium ''Brachypodium'' is a genus of plants in the grass family, widespread across much of Africa, Eurasia, and Latin America. The genus is classified in its own tribe Brachypodieae. Flimsy upright stems form tussocks. Flowers appear in compact s ...

'' species.

References

External links

Satyrinae of the Western PalearcticButterflies of Europe
Pyronia Butterflies of Europe Butterflies described in 1793 {{Satyrini-stub