Dientes gualdos (common Spanish name). Euphydryas desfontainii (Godart, 1819)
Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
Wingspan: From 3.8 to 4.5 cm.
Routes where it can be observed
- Great Malaga Path (GR 249). Stage 11. Alfarnate - Villanueva del Rosario
- Great Malaga Path (GR 249). Stage 13. Archidona - Villanueva de Tapia
- Great Malaga Path (GR 249). Stage 23. El Burgo - Ronda
- Great Malaga Path (GR 249). Stage 32. Ojén - Mijas
- Great Malaga Path (GR 249). Stage 33. Mijas - Benalmádena
Code
Open wings: There are wide orange stripes which are parallel to the outer margin, with a series of white or yellowish arches coloured in white or yellowish, after which the species was named Dientes gualdos, what in Spanish means: 'Yellow Teeth'. The orange stripes have a series of yellowish spots on the forewings, and black spots on the hindwings. Both wings have some dark brown patterns with orange, light orange, and yellowish spots on their inner part.
Closed wings: The hindwings margins have series of triangular and semicircled clearly marked white or yellowish spots. These is a series of black spots, outlined in white, on the hindwings orange stripe.
Similar species
Marsh Fritillary: It is rather similar. When its wings are open, the arches on the forewing margin are orange on the inside. When it closes the wings, we can see vague whitish or orangey spots on the forewing margin.
Biology and Habitat
This species takes only one generation a year to fly, above all, in April, May and June.
It lives in warm and sunny places, such as mountain sides or in scattered thickets, sparse woodland, and clear areas of dense forests with grassland. It caterpillars feed on the Giant Scabious (Cephalaria leucantha).
Distribution in the Great Path
This species is rare in Málaga. It can be seen along stages of the GMP that go through the western part of the Mijas Mountains, the Turón River and the Camarolos and Archidona Mountains. Nevertheless, considering the habitats it usually lives on, it is likely to exist on most of the stages that stretch from Nerja to Archidona, around reservoirs and the Serranía de Ronda.