The heath fritillary (Melitaea athalia) is a species of butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is found throughout the Palaearctic from western Europe to Japan, in heathland, grassland, and in coppiced woodland. Its association with coppiced woodland earned it the name "woodman's follower" in parts of the UK. It is considered a threatened species in the UK and Germany, but not Europe-wide or globally.
Description
Heath fritillaries have a wingspan of 39–47 mm. The upperside is predominantly dark brown and orange brown, with the orange-brown spots delineated by dark brown (along and across the wing veins); there is a white fringe to the wings through which the dark brown extends. The upperside of the body is a similar dark brown to the colour on the wing, and the base of both wings is dark brown. The underside shows bands of red and (off-)white, again with each vein dark brown and each colour delineated by dark brown. The pattern of white spots at the base of the hindwing (visible at rest) is diagnostic for identification.
These wing patterns are very similar to the appearance of Melitaea cinxia. However, the dark brown bands on underside of the wings are more distinct in the heath fritillary than in M. cinxia.
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Melitaea athalia MHNT UT 2013 3 29 Urval male dorsal.jpg|Male
Melitaea athalia MHNT UT 2013 3 29 Urval male ventral.jpg|Male underside
Melitaea athalia MHNT CUT 2013 3 29 Urval female dorsal.jpg|Female
Melitaea athalia MHNT CUT 2013 3 29 Urval female ventral.jpg|Female underside
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Range
The heath fritillary ranges throughout the Palaearctic region from western Europe to Japan.
In the UK, it is restricted to Cornwall and Devon grasslands (abandoned hay meadows); Exmoor (heathland); and Kent and Essex (coppiced woodland on acid soils). The populations in Essex are the result of reintroductions, In the late 1990s, the species was estimated to occupy just 0.2% within the 10-km grid squares over the whole of its UK range.
Its altitudinal range is from sea level to 2600 m. suggesting that globally it is not considered threatened. In the UK, however, the species was "considered to be the most endangered British butterfly" after a nationwide survey in 1980 found only 31 surviving colonies. Consequently, it was given protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Woodland sites in Kent and Essex are actively managed (coppiced) for the conservation of this species. It has been a "high priority" species in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan since 1995 and has its own Species Action Plan.
Heath fritillary is also on the "Red List" in Germany.
However, the species is considered of "least concern" on a European scale.
Habitat
Within Europe, the heath fritillary occupies a diversity of grassy, flowery habitats—dry or damp, upland or lowland, with or without shrubs or trees, including woodland clearings and heathland.
More specifically, in England, this species occupies three distinct habitats: The herd of 3 females and 1 male will be set free in 2022 within a 2,500-acre conservation area in Blean Woods near Canterbury.
Habits
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Heath fritillaries typically fly close to the ground, with characteristic "flits" and glides. Colonies tend to be compact, centred on favoured breeding areas. Heath fritillaries are highly sedentary for the most part, adults rarely moving more than 100 m; however, some have been recorded dispersing up to 2 km. For a species of often short-lived habitats, it has remarkably limited colonizing ability; suitable habitats over 600 m from an existing colony are colonized slowly.
- M. a. athalia – from the Atlantic coast to the Bosphorus (Turkey) (altitude 0–2200 m), excluding the ranges of the following subspecies
- M. a. norvegica <small>Aurivillius 1888</small> – Fennoscandia (altitude 0–800 m)
- M. a. celadussa <small>Frühstorfer 1910</small> – northern Iberia and the Sierra Nevada, southern France, southern Switzerland, Italy (including Sicily) (altitude 0–2600 m)
:* The transitional zone between subspecies athalia and celadussa is broad—up to 150 km in places
- M. a. dictynnoides <small>(Hormuzaki 1898)</small> – south-west Europe?
- M. a. lucifuga <small>(Fruhstorfer 1917)</small> – south-east Europe
- M. a. reticulata <small>Higgins 1955</small> – Altai
- M. a. baikalensis <small>(Bremer 1961)</small> – southern Siberia to Amur?
- M. a. hyperborea <small>Dubatolov 1997</small> – Magadan, Kamchatka
Many forms and subspecies of M. a. athalia have been described, but are best regarded as "ecological variants" and intermediates in clinal variation.