Butterflies from Picos de Europa, Spain- August 2011 #1 (1 Viewer)

I spent ten days here, mostly quite high up, staying in or around Fuente Dé, Potes and Posada de Valdeón. I saw a goodly selection of butterflies, taking well over 1000 pix and reviewing/deleting every evening. Over the next few weeks, I will be posting a selection: some just because they’re nice (!), others for confirmation/correction of, or assistance with, ID.

Members’ help would be much appreciated.

These were taken at Santa María de Lebeña, a wonderful Mozarabic church which, sadly, was closed while I was there, owing to the illness of the custodian:
(from the left)
1. Swallowtail P. machaon
2. Fritillary sp.
3. another Fritillary sp.
4. another Fritillary sp.
5. Scarce Swallowtail I. podalirius

2,3 and 4 look like Spotted Fritillary.

Phil

Butterflies from Picos de Europa #2

These were taken around Potes. I believe I have ID'd all, save for no. 2:
(from left to right)

1. Cleopatra G. cleopatra
2. Fritillary sp.
3. Long-tailed Blue- under L.boeticus
4. Long-tailed Blue- upper
5. Short- tailed Blue E. argiades

firstreesjohn said:

These were taken around Potes. I believe I have ID'd all, save for no. 2:
(from left to right)

1. Cleopatra G. cleopatra
2. Fritillary sp.
3. Long-tailed Blue- under L.boeticus
4. Long-tailed Blue- upper
5. Short- tailed Blue E. argiades

Click to expand...

Sounds like you had a good time. I spent two weeks in the Picos in July and we never got up in to the higher parts because of the continuous cloud cover and rain! Lovely part of the world though. I'm certainly no expert but 2 looks to me like a false heath fritillary

I think I was lucky with the weather: rain and cloud only on first and last days. I was told that northern Spain had been very wet through the summer.

By the time I’d reached Fuente De, though, the weather reports were talking of a ‘heatwave’- therefore, very hot, when applied to Spain !

Interestingly, it was much cooler in the valley at the bottom of the cable, in the morning. When we reached the top, it was hot and, fortunately for someone mainly after butterflies, there was little wind.

Butterflies from Picos de Europa #3

These were taken around Fuente De and at the top of the cable car ride:
(from left to right)

1. Fritillary sp.
2. Scarce Copper male L. virgaureae
3. Apollo P. Apollo (should this population have red AND yellow-orange markings?). This gorgeous thing was the only one I saw and a new species for me.
4. Clouded Yellow perched with open wings (!) C. crocea (?)
5. Marbled White M. galathea form procida (?)