Pararge xiphioides, the Canary speckled wood, is a butterfly of the family Nymphalidae. It is found in the Canary Islands on La Gomera, La Palma, Tenerife and Gran Canaria.

Pararge xiphioides
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Nymphalidae
Genus: Pararge
Species:
P. xiphioides
Binomial name
Pararge xiphioides

The wingspan is 40–50 millimetres (1.6–2.0 in). Adults are on wing year-round.

The larvae feed on various plants, including Brachypodium sylvaticum, Agrostis capillaris, Carex divulsa and Luzula forsteri.

It is closely related to the species Pararge aegeria.[1] differing thus xiphioides Stgr. (45a), from the Canary Islands, has the upperside darker on account of the smaller and more red-brown spots, while the underside of the hindwing is lighter, less marmorated and provided with a distinct median band, the costal part of which is shaded with white.[2]

References edit

  1. ^ Weingarter, Wahlberg & Nylin (2006): Speciation in Pararge (Satyrinae: Nymphalidae) butterflies - North Africa is the source of ancestral populations of all Pararge species. Systematic Entomology 31: 621-632.
  2. ^ Seitz. A. in Seitz, A. ed. Band 1: Abt. 1, Die Großschmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes, Die palaearktischen Tagfalter, 1909, 379 Seiten, mit 89 kolorierten Tafeln (3470 Figuren)  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.

External links edit