Monday 13 July 2015

Armenia part VIII

Day 12: Gnishik - southern slopes

Carcharodus lavatherae


Anthocharis cardamines, this individual has some features of the southeastern subspecies 'phoenissa'; the orange apical spot is bordered by clear dark dusting

Leptidea duponcheli

Lycaena thersamon

Polyommatus thersites

Polyommatus (Agrodiaetus) cf. huberti
More information to follow...

Nymphalis xanthomelas

 Argynnis pandora

Chazara persephone

Coenonympha leander

Habitat view, the few houses of the village of Gnishik at the left in the background

Provisional species list
 Erynnis tages
 Pyrgus sidae
 Spialia orbifer
 Carcharodus lavatherae
 Ochlodes sylvanus
 Thymelicus sylvestris
 Parnassius mnemosyne
 Iphiclides podalirius
 Leptidea duponcheli
 Aporia crataegi
 Pieris ergane
 Pieris pseudorapae
 Pontia edusa
 Colias alfacariensis
 Gonepteryx farinosa
 Lycaena phlaeas
 Lycaena tityrus
 Lycaena thersamon
 Tomares romanovi
 Callophrys paulae
 Cupido minimus
 Cupido osiris
 Glaucopsyche alexis
 Pseudophilotes vicrama
 Plebejus argus
 Aricia agestis
 Cyaniris semiargus
 Polyommatus amandus
 Polyommatus icarus
 Polyommatus thersites
 Polyommatus bellargus
 Polyommatus huberti
 Argynnis niobe
 Argynnis pandora
 Issoria lathonia
 Euphydryas aurinia
 Melitaea cinxia
 Melitaea didyma
 Melitaea arduinna
 Aglais urticae
 Nymphalis xanthomelas
 Polygonia c-album
 Libythea celtis
 Lasiommata megera
 Coenonympha arcania
 Coenonympha pamphilus
 Coenonympha leander
 Hyponephele lycaon
 Erebia medusa
 Melanargia russiae
 Chazara persephone

Sunday 12 July 2015

Armenia part VII

Day 11: Selim pass

The day before I moved back from Jermuk to Yeghegnadzor and I stayed at a camping site just south of the way to Selim pass. As this was a strategic location from where I could travel easily to different locations I decided to stay there for the next few days.
My first goal from there was to visit Selim pass.

Carcharodus lavatherae

Euchloe ausonia

Lycaena alciphron

Lycaena asabinus

Lycaena ochimus

Cyaniris semiargus bellis

Plebejus eurypilus

Polyommatus coelestinus

Melitaea persea

Polygonia egea, upperside and underside

Zygaena cambysea, male on the left, female on the right

Zygaena purpuralis chamurli

Habitat

Provisional species list
 Erynnis tages
 Erynnis marloyi
 Pyrgus serratulae
 Pyrgus armoricanus
 Pyrgus alveus
 Spialia orbifer
 Carcharodus alceae
 Carcharodus lavatherae
 Ochlodes sylvanus
 Thymelicus lineola
 Parnassius mnemosyne
 Iphiclides podalirius
 Papilio machaon
 Leptidea duponcheli
 Anthocharis cardamines
 Aporia crataegi
 Pieris rapae
 Pieris ergane
 Pontia edusa
 Colias croceus
 Colias alfacariensis
 Euchloe ausonia
 Lycaena phlaeas
 Lycaena tityrus
 Lycaena alciphron
 Cupido osiris
 Glaucopsyche alexis
 Pseudophilotes vicrama
 Aricia agestis
 Cyaniris semiargus
 Polyommatus amandus
 Polyommatus icarus
 Polyommatus bellargus
 Lycaena asabinus
 Lycaena ochimus
 Plebejus eurypilus
 Polyommatus coelestinus
 Turanana endymion
 Argynnis niobe
 Argynnis pandora
 Issoria lathonia
 Euphydryas aurinia
 Melitaea phoebe
 Melitaea cinxia
 Melitaea arduinna
 Vanessa cardui
 Aglais urticae
 Polygonia egea
 Limenitis reducta
 Lasiommata maera
 Coenonympha arcania
 Maniola jurtina
 Erebia medusa
 Melanargia russiae
 Melitaea persea
 Neptis rivularis
 Thaleropis ionia

Wednesday 8 July 2015

Armenia part VI

Day 8: Meghri -> Jermuk
This day was spent mostly on travelling from Meghri to Jermuk with a shared taxi. The main observation were some fresh males of Melitaea caucasogenita on the place where we had a lunch stop. Unfortunately too active to have pictures of.
In Jermuk my plan was to meet up with Peter Adriaens, who is spending some 4 months in Armenia working on Brown Bear monitoring.


Day 9: Vorotan pass
I went with Peter to the high slopes (2300-2700m) above Vorotan pass on this day. Main objective was to look for some Brown Bear traces and to look for Radde's accentor. This last one gave very nice views with several birds around. I spare you from the brown bear dung pics...
Poor day butterfly wise because of hard winds blowing constantly. Also flight season of most butterflies that fly on this height still had to start. Most important sightings were some whites of the napi-complex with very obvious suffused pattern. Dependent on the source this would be Pieris bryoniae or Pieris bowdeni in this region, a Transcaucasian counterpart of Pieris bryoniae. One Pyrgus melotis also showed that on 2500+m we were still early in the season for butterflies.


Day 10: Arpa valley south of Jermuk
A very nice warm day, still lots of wind but because walking in a deep gorge there was always some corner out of the wind where butterflies gathered. I walked the old road from just south of Kechut reservoir to Gndevaz village. The road is still on the road maps as a normal road but lots of rocks are scattered all over the road, even with 4-wheel drive you wouldn't manage to use this road.


Eogens alcides

Pyrgus melotis

Papilio alexanor

Pontia chloridice

Lycaena asabinus

Cupido osiris

Turanana endymion

Euphydryas aurinia

Libythea celtis, green color morph on the foodplant Celtis species

 
Idem but a younger brown color morph

Habitat in the gorge where P. alexanor and P. chloridice were flying

View on the Gndvanq monastery where I got out of the gorge at the end of the afternoon

Provisional species list
Erynnis tages
Erynnis marloyi
Pyrgus melotis
Pyrgus sidae
Spialia orbifer
Ochlodes sylvanus
Thymelicus lineola
Thymelicus sylvestris
Eogenes alcides
Parnassius mnemosyne
Iphiclides podalirius
Papilio alexanor
Leptidea duponcheli
Anthocharis cardamines
Aporia crataegi
Pieris brassicae
Pieris krueperi
Pieris ergane
Pontia chloridice
Pontia edusa
Colias croceus
Colias alfacariensis
Lycaena phlaeas
Lycaena tityrus
Lycaena alciphron
Lycaena asabinus
Satyrium abdominalis
Cupido osiris
Glaucopsyche alexis
Pseudophilotes vicrama
Aricia agestis
Aricia eumedon
Polyommatus amandus
Polyommatus icarus
Polyommatus bellargus
Polyommatus coelestinus
Plebejus eurypilus
Turanana endymion
Argynnis niobe
Argynnis pandora
Issoria lathonia
Euphydryas aurinia
Melitaea cinxia
Melitaea persea
Melitaea phoebe/pseudosibina
Melitaea telona
Neptis rivularis
Vanessa cardui
Aglais urticae
Polygonia egea
Lasiommata megera
Lasiommata maera
Coenonympha arcania
Maniola jurtina
Melanargia larissa
Melanargia russiae
Chazara persephone
Libythea celtis

Friday 3 July 2015

Armenia part V

Day 7: Kuris and surroundings

For this day I had the choice between trying again for Polyommatus damonides on the road to the airport (see Armenia part IV) or joining on a trip a bit higher up in the mountains with Alex Dantchenko, Russian Lycaenid specialist who I accidentally met in the B&B I stayed in Meghri. I made the second choice. Although this meant I would miss P. damonides, joining Alex Dantchenko was a more than unique chance.

Pieris pseudorapae
A taxon in the Pieris-napi-group. According to some authors this taxon should be synonymised with Pieris napi meridionalis but apparently breeding experiments between pseudorapae & napi suggest it to be two species. 

Colias aurorina, female
Note the very deep orange on the bit of front wing you can see on this pic, I have another pic of the same individual being attacked by a male Colias croceus and then the difference in color is very obvious.

Colias aurorina, female of the pale morph on the possible larval food plant, Astragalus species

Lycaena thersamon, male

Satyrium ilicis

Melanargia larissa

Chazara briseis

Provisional species list
Erynnis marloyi
Pyrgus sidae
Carcharodus lavatherae
Ochlodes sylvanus
Thymelicus lineola
Thymelicus sylvestris
Parnassius mnemosyne
Iphiclides podalirius
Papilio machaon
Aporia crataegi
Pontia edusa
Colias croceus
Colias alfacariensis
Colias aurorina
Gonepteryx rhamni
Pieris pseudorapae
Tomares romanovi
Lycaena phlaeas
Lycaena tityrus
Lycaena thersamon
Satyrium ilicis
Satyrium abdominalis
Cupido minimus
Cupido osiris
Cupido argiades
Celastrina argiolus
Glaucopsyche alexis
Aricia agestis
Cyaniris semiargus
Polyommatus amandus
Polyommatus icarus
Polyommatus bellargus
Plebejus eurypilus
Libythea celtis
Argynnis niobe
Argynnis pandora
Issoria lathonia
Brenthis daphne
Melitaea phoebe/pseudosibina
Melitaea didyma
Melitaea interrupta
Vanessa cardui
Aglais io
Polygonia c-album
Polygonia egea
Nymphalis polychloros
Limenitis reducta
Neptis rivularis
Lasiommata maera
Coenonympha leander
Maniola jurtina
Hyponephele lycaon
Melanargia galathea
Melanargia larissa
Melanargia russiae
Hipparchia pellucida
Brintesia circe
Chazara briseis
Pseudochazara thelephassa



Thursday 2 July 2015

Armenia part IV

Day 5:  Yeghegnadzor -> Meghri

Day 5 was spent mostly on travelling from Yeghegnadzor to Meghri. The distance is about 250km but it took me more or less a full day (2 hikes and 2 taxis) to get in Meghri. One of the only observations to remember is one Hipparchia parisatis just when I arrived to Meghri. Unfortunately it disappeared too quickly behind some trees to enjoy it much.
A roller in the village of Meghri and some laughing doves added with the hot temperatures created an eastern atmosphere. Near a ruin in the town centre I had another nice new dragonfly, Onychogomphus flexuosus


Day 6: Meghri

To the west of Meghri there is a road to an old airport and this road is where I spent my day.
A very nice but very hot area. Unfortunately not really being cared of by the locals. On the habitat picture you can see a big grey area low in the valley on the right side. This was a waste dump that was burning constantly. In probably one of the driest areas of Armenia one would presume that it would be logic to everyone that burning some waste is at least to be called irresponsible ... These slopes are the only location in Armenia where Polyommatus damonides lives and one of the very few locations in the world (only other known locations are in the nearby Naxcivan enclave of Azerbaijan. Unfortunately I didn't find the species, apparently the species was rather late this year with only a few males already flying around.


Coenonympha saadi

Satyrium hyrcanicum

Satyrium abdominalis

Pseudochazara cf. (mammura) sharudensis

Chamaesphecia elampiformis (det. Theo Garrevoet)


Provisional species list
Carcharodus alceae
Thymelicus sylvestris
Papilio machaon
Aporia crataegi
Pieris rapae
Pieris ergane
Pontia edusa
Colias croceus
Gonepteryx farinosa
Lycaena phlaeas
Satyrium spini
Satyrium abdominalis
Satyrium hyrcanicum
Aricia agestis
Polyommatus icarus (persicus)
Plebejus eurypilus
Tarucus balkanicus
Argynnis pandora
Vanessa cardui
Limenitis reducta
Lasiommata megera
Maniola jurtina
Melanargia larissa
Hipparchia pellucida
Brintesia circe
Chazara briseis
Chazara persephone
Coenonympha saadi
Pseudochazara (mamurra) sharudensis
Satyrus amasinus