Piedmont Ringlet (erebia meolans)
2008 photos highlighted green. Click on any photo to go to an enlarged picture, or simply scroll down the page.
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| 12202_male_Hautes Alpes_8Jul08 | 13021_male_Valais, Switzerland_16Jul08 | 8973_female_Hautes Pyrenees_9Aug07 |
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| 05_23-29_female?_Ariege_23Jul05 |
A widespread and sometimes very common erebia, unlike many of its relatives which tend to be quite localised. In the Valais in 2008 I saw it in very large numbers, in places to the exclusion of other erebia species. The ocelli are well developed and there is sometimes a small ocellus in s6, although if so, it is clearly not aligned with the larger ocelli in s4 and s5, compared with the ocelli on the de Prunner's Ringlet (E. triaria) upf when there is always an ocellus in s6 which is either perfectly in line with the two larger ocelli in s4 and s5 or very close to being aligned. Please see the notes on the triaria page for more detail.
12202: a male, taking salts, the red upf post-discal band being rather wider and brighter than normal.
13021: a male, despite the rather lighter brown ground colour which would normally be an indicator of female, as the male meolans generally has a dark unh. The female does have a strong colour contrast across the discal line, with a paler post-discal band, as shown in 50_23-29.
8973: a female, I'm guessing, based on the width of the upf red post-discal band. Altitude 1700m.
05_23-29: a female, based on the width of the unf red post-discal band and the general contrast and lightness of the unh, especially the post-discal band.
12202_male_Hautes Alpes_8Jul08
13021_male_Valais, Switzerland_16Jul08
8973_female_Hautes Pyrenees_9Aug07
