Species account

Spejlbredpande (Heteropterus morpheus) Duméril (1806)
Bredpander (Hesperiidae) [Sommerfugle] LCSK 24906

Large Chequered Skipper (gb) Saltarina (es) Spegelsmygare (se)

Measurements:

WS: 30-36mm

Generations:

Flight period:

Identification:

Similar species:

Life stages:

Distribution:

N Spain, W France and much of EC Europe, Italy, Denmark, Lithuania, Galkans, SE Bulgaria, NW Turkey, C Asia, Amur and Korea.

Habitat:

Nutrition-poor meadows, wet or near water with tall broad-leaved grasses. Forest clearings, along rivers or lakes.

Behavior:

Peculiar dancing flight. Like hopping in the air with every wing beat. Very elegant!

Host plants:

Eng-Rørhvene (Calamagrostis canescens) [Purple Small-Reed ~ Grenrör]
Blåtop (Molinia caerulea) [Purple Moor-Grass ~ Molinia ~ Blåtåtel]
Skov-Stilkaks (Brachypodium sylvaticum) [False-Brome ~ Lastón ~ Lundskafting]
Tagrør (Phragmites australis) [Common Reed ~ Carrizo ~ Phragmites australis]
Rørgræs (Phalaris arundinacea) [Reed Canary Grass ~ alpiste cinta ~ Rörflen]

Feeding plants:

Tidsler [Thistles ~ Cardos ~ Tistlar]
Almindelig Kællingetand (Lotus corniculatus) [Bird's-foot Trefoil ~ Loto Corniculado ~ Käringtand

Status

. Recently arrived species in Denmark, 2008. Still very local in Denmark, being restricted to Bøtøskoven (Falster). But the small population is apparently stable for now.

Comment:

As with many other butterflies it is a good idea to visit early or late in the day when the sun is less strong. Otherwise the animals tend to be to active flying around constantly or being very wary and flush from a larger distance. Relevant for those who wants to take photos.

	896 (1 photos) 2022-07-03 Bøtø-skoven, Denmark Imago Sexes alike. The first one to sit still when we returned to the site in the afternoon. Earlier they would just flush from a large distance and fly far before sitting out of sight.
	898 (2 photos) 2022-07-03 Bøtø-skoven, Denmark Imago The discrete upperside compared to the flashy underside, allowing for a complete disguise and disappearing act, if necessary.
	899 (2 photos BOTH SIDES) 2022-07-03 Bøtø-skoven, Denmark Imago I had gotten the impression that the species never sat with the wings open, but during the 15 minutes we were there, we found two that did so readily.
	1964 (1 photos) 2023-07-21 Bøtø-skoven, Denmark Imago A too short visit gave a single photo of one of the four animals flying at that moment.
	2859 (2 photos BOTH SIDES) 2024-07-15 Bøtø-skoven, Denmark Imago Lysning sv for parkeringspladsen. 5 animals flying this afternoon. Locality looking as good as last year, though perhaps more dense vegetation with smaller trees growing. But still good patches with grass in between.
	2860 (2 photos) 2024-07-15 Bøtø-skoven, Denmark Imago Lysning sv for parkeringspladsen. One of 5 today.
	897 (4 photos) 2022-07-03 Bøtø-skoven, Denmark Imago Han & Hun The hidden individual is a male that arrived to try to mate, but the female didn't look too impressed, and rejected him, why he took off again.

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