Catalonian pyrenees ID's

[owenfiggis]

I've just returned from a trip to the Pyrenees and there's two or three butterflies I'm not sure about. The first of them is this blue. There were at least two quite worn individuals with a similar size to a large blue. The altitude was about 1500m. My initial thoughts were mountain alcon but they seem closer to iolas in Tolman and Lewington's guide.

Owen

[Padfield]

Hi Owen. That's a worn, male Amanda's blue, Polyommatus amandus. I've seen very similar individuals in July in the Val d'Aran.

Guy

[owenfiggis]

Many thanks for that Guy. I did see a really fresh amanda's nearby but its not a species I am familiar with.

Owen

[owenfiggis]

I got pretty excited when I found this lovely eribia. It was close to a scree slope at about 1750m and I was convinced that it was Lefebvre's. Not so sure now, and I'm leaning towards Piedment ringlet despite being quite unlike the ones I saw in the massif central a few years ago.

Owen

[Roger Gibbons]

That looks good for meolans to me. I don't think it is lefebvrei (ocelli not close enough to the external edge of the post-discal band), and it isn't triaria (ocellus in s6 clearly not in line with those in s4 and s5). It may well be a female, based on the size of the ocelli and from what can be seen of the colour of the underside hindwing.

Roger

[owenfiggis]

That's great Roger, many thanks. Here's the next one. I must have seen thousands of marbled whites over the week but this one stood out. Could this be f.leucomelas?

Owen.

[David M]

That's more 'washed out' than any I've seen before!!

[Padfield]

Yes, it is leucomelas.

Guy