Высоко-бурый пеструшка: описание и угроза исчезновения

Species of butterfly

Fabriciana adippe, the high brown fritillary, is a large and brightly colored butterfly of the family Nymphalidae, native to Europe and across the Palearctic to Japan. It is known for being Great Britain's most threatened butterfly and is listed as a vulnerable species under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Like other fritillaries it is dependent on warm climates with violet rich flora. TOC

The high brown fritillary's wingspan is on average around 65 mm. Its upper wings are orange with black markings and the undersides are colored a duller orange with white and brown markings. While flying, it is very hard to distinguish from the dark green fritillary which has many of the same markings. The male and female fritillary share many of the same physical features. Larvae are brown with a single longitudinal white stripe down the length of their body. Their bodies are covered in brown spikes which aid in camouflaging them from predators as they move among dead fern fronds.

A. adippe L. (= berecynthia Poda, cydippe L.) (69d). Usually larger than the previous species [ Argynnis alexandra Ménetries, 1832], the wings
more obtuse, the outer margin of the forewing quite straight and that of the hindwing feebly undulate in the female. Easily recognized by the thickened hairy streaks placed in the male on the branches of the median vein on the forewing. Beneath the silver spots are much larger than in niobe, particularly the marginal spots are much longer and broader.

This butterfly has many subspecies that span across Europe and throughout Asia and Africa, given that there are temperate temperatures in those regions. Northern Europe has seen a severe decline in fritillary population but it is still relatively abundant in other parts of Europe. As of 2015, the high brown fritillary was the most threatened British butterfly species. In warm weather the fritillary is most active, and spends most of its time flying low to the ground above and around Bracken and other flora.

The egg laying process begins when a female does low passes above bracken fronds and drop down when they find a suitable spot. Females will then crawl on the bracken littered ground and use their abdomens to probe for likely egg laying spots. Eggs are normally laid once a female crawls over a plant that can serve as a food resource. Eggs may also be laid without any area observation, and without any food plants nearby, as females have been observed to lay eggs within seconds of landing. False egg laying is also common. It has legal protection in the UK under the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act. The British decline of the fritillary can be attributed to novel changes in land management, increasing during the 20th century.

Fritillaries in woodland habitats have been most severally affected by habitat loss. These butterflies relied heavily on coppicing, a land managing technique that has all but disappeared from Great Britain's countryside. The reduction of coppicing combined with replanting and new forest growth has several limited the places the fritillary can thrive, as bracken habitats are becoming rarer. Within bracken habitats, population loss is driven when bracken growth is too extreme or grazing animals trample the flora associated with the butterfly. The herd of 3 females and 1 male will be set free in 2022 within a 2,500 acre conservation area in Blean Woods near Canterbury.