Some butterflies from Hymettus , Mount Dirfis and elsewhere

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Bolanthus

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The plant: Valeriana italica (syn V. dioscoridis) the butterfly: Zerynthia polyxena


The plant: red valerian (Centranthus ruber),  the butterfly: Papilio alexanor. I think that red valerians are great attractors for butterflies (these beautiful plants have also a prolonged flowering period on the mountain)


Again a red valerian visited this time by a balkan marbled white


I have seen lots of small butterflies on  bloomed Anthyllis hermanniae






And this one was resting on a nearby Dorycnium hirsutum


 Scabiosa maritima also attracts butterflies



And so does Cistus creticus ! (photographed on mount Dirfis)



The last butterfly that I happen to know is Iphiclides podalirius
« Last Edit: July 12, 2012, 05:42:53 PM by Fleur Pavlidis »
Aris Zografidis
A lot of interest for the mediterranean flora and for the water wise gardening –but no garden yet. 
my blog on Greek Flora: ROSA SEMPERVIRENS

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MikeHardman

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #1 on: July 08, 2012, 02:30:34 PM »
Bolanthus - gorgeous!
Beautiful subjects, so nicely captured. I enjoyed looking at them.
I wish my valerians would do better; perhaps would help if I planted them out (languishing in pots)!
And 'lots of' butterflies on Anthyllis hermanniae! I am tempted to try to get some of that.
Mike
Geologist by Uni training, IT consultant, Referee for Viola for Botanical Society of the British Isles, commissioned author and photographer on Viola for RHS (Enc. of Perennials, The Garden, The Plantsman).
I garden near Polis, Cyprus, 100m alt., on marl, but have gardened mainly in S.England

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ritamax

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #2 on: July 08, 2012, 08:32:45 PM »
So beautiful those butterflies! I wish I could attract so many to my garden! I see some on my blooming ivy hedge. Buddleja davidii is a butterfly plant, but an invasive one (in both Spain and Switzerland, where I garden). Have to find out more about butterfly plants!
Hobbygardener (MGS member) with a rooftop garden in Basel and a garden on heavy clay with sand 600m from seaside in Costa Blanca South (precipitation 300mm), learning to garden waterwise

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Bolanthus

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #3 on: July 08, 2012, 09:18:16 PM »
Thanks  :D
A few hours ago I was again on Hymettus and to my surprise there was a multitude of butterflies on Cephalaria ambrosioides, an impressive plant of the Scabious family that I think is worth trying in gardens. It is typically 1.50-1.70m tall and occasionally over 1.90m!  -for more pictures of this plant you can see by clicking here http://rosa-sempervirens.blogspot.gr/2012/06/cephalaria-ambrosioides.html)




« Last Edit: July 08, 2012, 09:20:50 PM by Bolanthus »
Aris Zografidis
A lot of interest for the mediterranean flora and for the water wise gardening –but no garden yet. 
my blog on Greek Flora: ROSA SEMPERVIRENS

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oron peri

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #4 on: July 08, 2012, 09:49:28 PM »
Fantastic thread Bolanthus, wonderful species.
Not from Mt. Dirfis, but from Mt. Meron in the upper Galilee, this morning while looking for an Allium i have maneged to take a photo of Limenities reducta. The caterpilers are fed on Lonicera etrusca.
Garden Designer, Bulb man, Botanical tours guide.
Living and gardening in Tivon, Lower Galilee region, North Israel.
Min temp 5c Max 42c, around 450mm rain.

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ritamax

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #5 on: July 08, 2012, 10:03:41 PM »
Thanks Bolanthus and Oron! Never seen those before!
Hobbygardener (MGS member) with a rooftop garden in Basel and a garden on heavy clay with sand 600m from seaside in Costa Blanca South (precipitation 300mm), learning to garden waterwise

HansA

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #6 on: July 08, 2012, 10:11:33 PM »
Some fascinating butterflies Bolanthus and Oron!
Never have seen Papilio alexanor - here in the western part of the mediterranean the similar Papilio machaon is common - as this one I saw in the garden yesterday.
bulbgrower on the balearic islands, spain
landscape architect

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Bolanthus

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #7 on: July 08, 2012, 11:48:32 PM »
oh, my pleasure to shoot and share those photos  :)

And Oron, what a coincidence... I also found some L. reducta on mt Hymettus today  and tried to shoot -unsuccessfully- a decent photo. They wouldn't stay still on Corydothymus capitatus, the plant that I, the bees, and -as it seems- L. reducta also love!
Aris Zografidis
A lot of interest for the mediterranean flora and for the water wise gardening –but no garden yet. 
my blog on Greek Flora: ROSA SEMPERVIRENS

Umbrian

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #8 on: July 09, 2012, 05:34:08 AM »
Wonderful photographs Bolanthus - thank you.  :) My efforts to photograph the many butterflies I get in the garden end up as blurs :(
MGS member living and gardening in Umbria, Italy for past 19 years. Recently moved from my original house and now planning and planting a new small garden.

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MikeHardman

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #9 on: July 09, 2012, 07:31:39 AM »
Oh, come on, guys, please ... you're making me salivate with all these lovely photos of lovely butterflies and moths!

Re your Cephalaria ambrosioides photo, Bolanthus: the English name for Euplagia quadripunctaria is Jersey tiger moth.

Re Papilio machaon, the 'ordinary' swallowtail. I'd be interested to hear about observations of any unusual behaviour, especially from Cyprus members, as I am compiling information for an article for the Cyprus Butterfly Study Group. For instance across much of its range, it uses fennel as its larval food plant, but in my area it uses Crithmum maritimum (rock samphire) (see photos).
« Last Edit: July 09, 2012, 07:33:12 AM by MikeHardman »
Mike
Geologist by Uni training, IT consultant, Referee for Viola for Botanical Society of the British Isles, commissioned author and photographer on Viola for RHS (Enc. of Perennials, The Garden, The Plantsman).
I garden near Polis, Cyprus, 100m alt., on marl, but have gardened mainly in S.England

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John J

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #10 on: July 09, 2012, 08:14:00 AM »
Mike, as I have already posted the swallowtails in my area always make a 'bee-line' (sorry) for the Crithmum. I have never found their caterpillers on any other plant, although when we move them to the parsley (it's going over by then and they can clear up the older foliage) they seem to survive. We grow Florence fennel but I've never found any evidence of preference for that, it's always the Crithmum that they go for.
Cyprus Branch Head. Gardens in a field 40 m above sea level with reasonably fertile clay soil.
"Aphrodite emerged from the sea and came ashore and at her feet all manner of plants sprang forth" John Deacon (13thC AD)

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oron peri

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #11 on: July 09, 2012, 09:27:56 AM »
Mike,

In this part of the Mediterranean Papilio machon is fed on Foeniculum vulgare leaves in the early seoson, then mainly on Ruta graveolens, as foeniculum leaves dry out in summer.
This is why i grow few plants of Ruta in my garden, as douznes of buterflies are born here each year.
Ruta is also grown here againts the evill eye... you can never know.... :-[
By the way the caterpiler in your photo is still young, it still poses the 'thorny' hairs on its back.
Mature caterpilers do not have it.
« Last Edit: July 09, 2012, 09:29:47 AM by oron peri »
Garden Designer, Bulb man, Botanical tours guide.
Living and gardening in Tivon, Lower Galilee region, North Israel.
Min temp 5c Max 42c, around 450mm rain.

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MikeHardman

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #12 on: July 09, 2012, 12:16:46 PM »
Oron - good stuff - thank you
Mike
Geologist by Uni training, IT consultant, Referee for Viola for Botanical Society of the British Isles, commissioned author and photographer on Viola for RHS (Enc. of Perennials, The Garden, The Plantsman).
I garden near Polis, Cyprus, 100m alt., on marl, but have gardened mainly in S.England

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Bolanthus

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #13 on: July 10, 2012, 01:32:28 PM »
Oh, come on, guys, please ... you're making me salivate with all these lovely photos of lovely butterflies and moths!

Re your Cephalaria ambrosioides photo, Bolanthus: the English name for Euplagia quadripunctaria is Jersey tiger moth.

Thank you MikeHardman for the correction, they are indeed moths and not butterflies -though fairly diurnal as it seems :)
It is the same species that covers the tree trunks in the valley of the butterflies in Rhodes every summer. (I guess you knew that :)
Aris Zografidis
A lot of interest for the mediterranean flora and for the water wise gardening –but no garden yet. 
my blog on Greek Flora: ROSA SEMPERVIRENS

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MikeHardman

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Re: Some butterflies from Hymettus and mount Dirfis
« Reply #14 on: July 10, 2012, 04:25:59 PM »
Bolanthus - valley of the butterflies - no I didn't know that - thank you,
but I've Googled it now; interesting;
good to talk!
Mike
Geologist by Uni training, IT consultant, Referee for Viola for Botanical Society of the British Isles, commissioned author and photographer on Viola for RHS (Enc. of Perennials, The Garden, The Plantsman).
I garden near Polis, Cyprus, 100m alt., on marl, but have gardened mainly in S.England