Mallow skipper (Carcharodus alceae)

Here’s a detailed profile of the Mallow Skipper (Carcharodus alceae), a small, fast-flying butterfly often found in sunny, open habitats.

🦋 Mallow Skipper Overview

• Scientific name: Carcharodus alceae
• Common name: Mallow Skipper
• Family: Hesperiidae (skippers)
• Wingspan: 24–32 mm
• Flight style: Low, fast, and jerky — typical of skippers

🌍 Distribution and Habitat

• Range:
  • Found across southern and central Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, and into central Asia.
  • Reaches as far north as central France, Germany, and Poland, though patchier there.
• Habitat:
  • Prefers sunny, dry, and open places:
    • Meadows, pastures, field margins, roadsides, fallow land, and dry slopes
  • Usually in lowland and warm foothill areas, up to ~1,500 m altitude.

🌿 Larval Food Plants

Caterpillars feed mainly on mallows (Malva spp.), including:

• Common mallow (Malva sylvestris)
• Dwarf mallow (Malva neglecta)
• Other related Malvaceae plants

Eggs are laid singly on the leaves of host plants.

🐛 Life Cycle

• Generations:
  • Typically two to three generations per year (April–October), depending on climate.
  • In cooler areas: one generation from late spring to early summer.
  • In warmer areas: continuous broods possible.
• Larvae:
  • Greenish or brownish with fine hairs.
  • Feed from a shelter made by folding or rolling a leaf and fastening it with silk.
• Overwintering stage:
  • Usually as a pupa within the leaf litter or in a silken cocoon.

🔍 Identification

• Upperside:
  • Brown to gray-brown with a mottled appearance.
  • Pale spots irregularly arranged on both forewings and hindwings.
• Underside:
  • Greenish-brown or olive-gray with lighter blotches and faint cross-lines.
  • Hindwing underside pattern is useful for distinguishing from other skippers.
• Comparison:
  • Similar to the Tufted Marbled Skipper (Carcharodus flocciferus) but generally has a warmer tone and slightly different spot arrangement.

⚠ Conservation Status

• IUCN Red List: Least Concern
• Still common in many parts of its range, but local declines due to:
  • Agricultural intensification reducing wildflower and mallow abundance
  • Herbicide use along field edges and roadsides
  • Loss of open, sunny grasslands

🔎 Interesting Facts

• One of the earliest skippers to appear in spring in warmer areas.
• Often perches on low vegetation or bare ground, basking with wings spread flat.
• The caterpillar’s leaf-folding behavior offers both camouflage and protection from predators.

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