Hodges#4459
Speyeria atlantis
Classification
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Subphylum: Hexapoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Lepidoptera
- Superfamily: Papilionoidea
- Family: Nymphalidae
- Subfamily: Heliconiinae
- Tribe: Argynnini
- Genus: Speyeria
- Species: atlantis
Pronunciation
How to pronounce Speyeria atlantis: //spɛˈɪəriə ətˈlæntɪs//
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Images
Summary
Speyeria atlantis, also known as the Atlantis fritillary, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae found in North America. Its range spans from Newfoundland and Labrador to northern British Columbia and as far south as Colorado and West Virginia. The species is sensitive to temperature changes, showing decline in response to climate warming trends.
Physical Characteristics
Wingspan: 50–70 mm in the United States; 50-64 mm in Canada. Upperside is dark orange with many rows of black markings and black wing margins. Underside is light brown with many silvery-white spots. Males have parallel veins and lower half of forewing prominently scaled black.
Identification Tips
Easily distinguished from other species in the East by gray living eye color and smaller size. S. cybele usually lacks the dark spot near the lower margin of the wing below the discal cell. S. aphrodite lacks the prominent dark scaling along the veins in males. In the West, S. egleis and S. hesperis are most similar.
Habitat
Forest openings, upland pastures, bogs, meadows, and moist canyons, nearly always within or close to Aspen and/or moist conifer forests.
Distribution
Newfoundland to British Columbia and Northwest Territories in Canada, south to Virginia in the Appalachians, and south to Utah and New Mexico in the Rocky Mountains.
Diet
Larvae feed on violets (Viola spp.); adults are avid flower visitors, especially of Composites (Asteraceae family) including common milkweed, mint, mountain laurel, crown vetch, burdock, boneset, ox-eye daisy, spiraea, and virgin's bower.
Life Cycle
Eggs are laid in summer on or next to violets, hatch and overwinter as small larvae. Development continues through spring, with the pupal period lasting roughly two or three weeks. Adults fly from June to late August or early September; most common in June or July.
Reproduction
Eggs laid in summer on or next to violets.
Conservation Status
Endangered in Connecticut.
Ecosystem Role
Pollinators in their habitats, contributing to the health of flowers and ecosystems.
Tags
- butterfly
- Nymphalidae
- Speyeria atlantis
- Atlantis fritillary
- conservation