76. D ESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE: NYMPHALIDAE FAMILY Small Heath Coenonympha pamphilus (Linnaeus, 1758)

DESCRIPTION Wingspan: From 2.4 to 3.4 cm. Closed wings: Male butterfl ies hindwings are brown-grey and hairy, while females are creamy- coloured and they are not hairy. Both sexes have orange forewings with the margins covered in the same colours as the hindwings. Moreover, there is a small eyespot on the forewings apex, while the hindwings have a series of vague and hardly visible eyespots. In the middle of these wings, there are dark spots, from which continue another lighter stains. Open wings: This species never rest with stretched wings. They are orange with brown margins and two visible eyespots. One of them is on the forewing apex and the other close to the hindwing anal angle.

KEY FOR VISUAL IDENTIFICATION

FEMALE Spot that is lighter than the rest of the wing MALE Small eyespot

A series of vague eyespots, not visible on some butterfl ies

A series of dark dots

MALE FEMALE

188 DIURNAL BUTTERFLIES • GRGR-249 249 Great MalMalaga Path Female butterflies can be confused with the Gatekeeper, which is yellowish and mottled. There is a double eyespot on the forewing, as well as the series of prominent eyespots, which make groups of two and three. A bright stretch separates them one from another.

There are two generations a year that fl y throughout the year, above all from March to July. The species lives in open and fl at areas, or those which are not very steep, such as rural surroundings, uncultivated land, grassland, pasture, olive and almond groves, where little amount of biocide was used. It is scarcer and limited to certain locations in mountainous surroundings, where it is restricted to sparse woodland and scattered thickets. Is caterpillars feed on grass plants that belong to, for example, Festuca, Poa and Dactylis genera. Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

This species is common in grassy habitats, but, strangely, it cannot be found in coastal areas in the province. As for the GMP, it also exists on almost all inland stages, except those close to the coast and in the Almijara and Tejeda Mountains.

Legend:

Great Malaga Path

Distribution of the species along the GMP GR-249 Great Malaga Path • DIURNAL BUTTERFLIES 189