Grizzled Skipper (Pyrgus malvae)
2011 photos highlighted in green. Click on any photo to go to an enlarged picture, or simply scroll down the page.
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| 14714_male_Var_22Apr09 | 16790_male_Alpes-Maritimes_27Jun09 | 5516_male_Var_15May07 |
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| 05_16-32_male_Hautes-Alpes_5Jun05 | 10596_female_Var_19May08 | 14468_male_Rhône_12Apr09 |
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One of several Pyrgus species that occur in France, but the only representative of this group in the UK. Malvae is slightly smaller than most other Pyrgus, and rather darker. The white marks are quite extensive, more so than most Pyrgus, and the (usually arched) submarginal marks are usually present to a greater or lesser degree, strongly on the uph and to a lesser extent on the upf. It is an early emerger, being on the wing in France from the end of April and single-brooded, although malvoides (see below) is double brooded in non-mountainous regions. I feel the cleft "clothes peg" (if you are of an age when you can remember wooden clothes pegs) discal mark, which appears on both the uph and the unh, is a clear indicator of malvae where there may otherwise be doubt. In addition, the underside is quite dark brown with pronounced yellower veins and distinctly smaller marks than other Pyrgus. |
In south-west Europe, including the southern half of France, the form malvoides occurs instead of malvae. It is generally said to be indistinguishable from malvae on external characteristics (only by examination of the genitalia) although I have seen it commented that the upperside submarginal marks are less distinct in malvoides. All of the photos on this page are, I believe, malvoides, (with the possible exception of 14468) and this feature seems to hold true here. It is suggested that intermediate forms may occur in the boundary area in central France, and the two were sometimes considered to be separate species. In the new European taxonomy, malvoides is now given the status of a species in its own right, no longer a subspecies of malvae. |
| ref | sex |
observations |
alt. m |
| 14714 | M |
rather indistinct white markings in the usual places and some rather faint markings in the remaining areas. |
220 |
| 16790 | M |
a deep dark brown ground colour and strong white markings plus a white-ish band in the upf submarginal area. As such it could not be confused with any other Pyrgus species. |
900 |
| 5516 | M |
a rather black-brown ground colour, and extended post-discal spots in s2 and s3 in particular, an aberration but not to the extent of taras. |
340 |
| 05_16-32 | M |
the rare aberration taras with extended white upf marks, which I have now seen on two occasions. |
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| 10596 | F |
very sharply marked with highly sagittate submarginal markings, especially on the uph. A rather more worn male is approaching from below. |
230 |
| 14468 | M? |
a male, I think, even though the abdominal hair tuft is not entirely clear. The small discrete white marks show up well against the darker ground colour. |
320 |
16790_male_Alpes-Maritimes_27Jun09
05_16-32_male_Hautes-Alpes_5Jun05
