Nymphalis xanthomelas
Eastern Great Fox ( nymphalis xanthomelas )
The designated Eastern Great Fox ( nymphalis xanthomelas ), also known as Big Fire fox, willow -floodplain splendor moth or bastard fox, is a butterfly ( butterfly ) of the family Nymphalidae ( Nymphalidae ).
Description
The moths reach a wingspan of 50-56 millimeters. They have an orange -brown to red-brown staining. On the fore wings there are several different sized black spots. Near the apex of a whitish spot takes off. The outer edge is serrated dark with a fine, whitish, embedded line and strong. The under-wing show a large black spot in the middle of the front edge, have also strongly serrated a dark outer edge with some intercalated bluish drawing elements and are. The caterpillars are black gray color, prickly and have numerous small, yellow spots and deep black side stripes. The doll is light gray to light brown, gray blue frosting and shows no metal stains.
Similar Species
The moths are similar to the Great Fox ( nymphalis polychloros ) strongly differ from the latter by the following features:
- Ground color bright orange to reddish brown
- Serrated outer edge more
- Spot at the apex clearly knows
- Legs yellow colored, with polychloros these are black
Only slight similarity to the much smaller and more colorful little fox ( Aglais urticae ) and to nymphalis vaualbum who ever has on both sides of the rear wing a distinctive white patch.
Distribution and occurrence
As the name suggests, the type, starting throughout their distribution of Eastern Europe comprises the whole of Central and East Asia, including the Himalayan region, Japan and Taiwan. Until the mid- twentieth century, they came across several years as a butterfly and caterpillar, partly in number, in Pomerania, Thuringia, Brandenburg, Berlin and Bavaria before. Older documents from Baden- Württemberg be doubted by Günter Ebert and Erwin Rennwald as misidentifications or confusion. You talk about the results: "This eastern species does not occur in Baden- Württemberg. ". The animals are mainly to be found in less hot areas. They are found in open woods or bushy terrain. In Austria there is evidence from younger and Korneuburg from Kahlenberg, very old evidence also from Upper Austria ( Krems Münster, Mattighofen).
The population in Japan is separated as a distinct subspecies nymphalis xanthomelas japonica ( Stylus, 1908) of the Nominatunterart. The subspecies nymphalis xanthomelas fervescens ( Stylus, 1908) occurs in Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and in the Himalayas. This subspecies increases in the Indian part of the Himalayas up to 3600 m. The subspecies nymphalis xanthomelas formosana ( Matsumura, 1925) is limited to Taiwan.
Way of life
The moths fly from June to late autumn, winter and fly back from early spring until May. The females lay eggs on the twigs of the food plant preference of willow ( Salix) and elm species ( Ulmus ) - from where the caterpillars then sociable live in nests mainly in May and June. They pupate in a Stürzpuppe. These figures relate to Central and Eastern Europe.
Endangering
The species is regarded in Germany as missing or extinct and is therefore classified in the Red List of endangered species in Category 0.