That is a wonderful choice. The Lesser Marbled Fritillary (Brenthis ino) is a beautiful medium-sized butterfly known for its preference for damp, lush habitats across the Palaearctic region.1
Here is a deep review of its key features, life cycle, and ecology.
🦋 Lesser Marbled Fritillary (Brenthis ino) Deep Review
1. Identification and Morphology
The Lesser Marbled Fritillary belongs to the Nymphalidae (Brush-footed butterflies) family and the Fritillary tribe (Argynnini).2
| Feature | Description |
| Size | Medium-sized, with a wingspan typically between 34–42 mm (1.3–1.7 inches). Females are generally larger and sometimes slightly darker than males. |
| Upperside | The basic color is orange with dark brown or black blotches and spots. The margins are edged with a fine, discontinuous stripe. |
| Underside (Key Feature) | The underside is crucial for differentiation from similar species. The forewing is creamy orange with dark blotches. The hindwing is where it earns its common name; it has a marbled pattern of brown-edged beige or creamy checks and a row of circular blotches often surrounded by brown or violet shading. Crucially, it lacks the metallic silver spots characteristic of many other Fritillaries (like Argynnis species). |
| Similar Species | It is most often confused with the Marbled Fritillary (Brenthis daphne). B. ino is often slightly smaller, and on the underside of the hindwing, it has a central pale yellow/creamy patch, whereas B. daphne usually has a more pinkish-orange shading in that area. |
2. Habitat and Distribution
- Geographic Range: It has a broad Palaearctic distribution, ranging from Northern Spain across Central and Northern Europe (including Scandinavia) eastward through Siberia and temperate Asia to North China and Japan.3 It is absent from the British Isles and most of the Mediterranean islands.4
- Habitat Preference: This butterfly is strongly associated with damp or humid habitats:
- Primary Biotope: Humid or wet meadows, fen margins, bogs, riverside marshes, and clearings within wet forests.5
- Altitude: Found from sea level up to around 1,500 meters (4,900 ft) in mountainous regions.6
- Conservation Status: Globally assessed as Least Concern (LC). While it has declined or disappeared in a few regions (like the Netherlands), it is thriving or increasing in others (like the Czech Republic and Hungary).7 Its success is attributed to its adaptability and moderately broad host plant range, allowing it to persist in fragmented wet landscapes.8
3. Life Cycle
The Lesser Marbled Fritillary is univoltine (has one generation per year) across most of its European range.
| Stage | Period | Detail |
| Adult | Mid-June to early August | Males actively patrol their habitat to search for females. Adults feed on nectar from various flowers, including thistles, knapweeds (Centaurea), scabiouses (Knautia), and meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria). |
| Egg | Summer | Females lay eggs singly, usually low down on or near the host plant. |
| Larva (Caterpillar) | Overwinters (September – April) | The species typically overwinters as a fully developed larva inside the egg shell (in the chorion). It hatches in early spring (March/April) and feeds until maturity in May/June. Larvae are dark and spiny, often feeding at night or during cloudy weather. |
| Pupal | Late Spring (May – June) | The pupa (chrysalis) is formed in a sheltered place near the ground on or near the host plant. The pupal stage is relatively short (around 10–18 days). |
4. Larval Host Plants
The Lesser Marbled Fritillary is closely associated with plants from the Rosaceae family (the rose family).
- Primary Host Plant: Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria), which is highly characteristic of the butterfly’s damp meadow habitat.9
- Other Key Hosts:
- Dropwort (Filipendula vulgaris)10
- Great Burnet (Sanguisorba officinalis)11
- Various Rubus species (like Raspberry (R. idaeus) and Cloudberry (R.12 chamaemorus)).
The use of a variety of host plants allows the butterfly to be successful across different geographic localities and provides resilience against habitat fragmentation compared to stricter specialists.
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