Male, Switzerland
Mating pair, Switzerland
Female of the green form, valesina, France 2004
Green female, valesina, Switzerland 2006
This is a majestic insect, the true aristocrat among the fritillaries. Although reasonably common in woodland throughout Europe, it is always arresting, commanding attention as it swoops and soars along rides or feeds on nectar sources. The green female form generally occurs in fixed proportion in particular communities, but the ratio varies from almost zero (near me in Switzerland, for example) to 50:50, as in the site in Provence where I photographed the one above.