A worldwide community photographing and learning about wildlife
Project Noah Nature School
Melanargia galathea
This Eurasian butterfly in the family Nymphalidae is distinguished by its black and white markings. This one was found at the edge of a hay meadow where a band had been left intact in order to try and favor biodiversity.
Edge of meadow, alt. 700m ASL
While there are several species in the genus Melanargia in Europe, M. galathea is the only species found in Switzerland. These butterflies are found in open flowery meadows, often feeding from purple knapweeds as seen here.
Spotted on Jun 22, 2014
Submitted on Oct 29, 2014
![[Melanargia lachesis]](https://lh5.ggpht.com/c3eeI8Yb8EDLyesJXmoIdYp4P1v95216j9wNK32CUGUwkHw2Dc6llGsNNudWvb7XI1DYMOygSWgGd0hLVWom=s62-c)
16 Comments
Thanks for your kind words Isabela!
What a beautiful collection, Daniele!!
Thanks for all your kind comments Dr. Sherpa :-)
So pretty, Daniele.
Thanks Maria! It's nice to see this type of agricultural practice taking place. This is a direct consequence of a recent change in government agricultural policy. The same meadow also has trees with bird nesting boxes :-)
Lovely spotting, Daniele. And the notes are of interest, too, showing that leaving some area intact, even around hay meadows, can help preserve some biodiversity.
Beautiful capture Danièle,congrats and thanks for sharing
Thanks Adi :-)
Ah..really beautiful :)
Thank you Charlie!
Gorgeous butterfly and impressive shots !
That's what I like about it too. Very pretty.
Thanks Dixie! The light was perfect on that day. I love this butterfly's simple black and white design.
Really nice shots. Very nice siting.
Thank you Noel :-)
Wow! What a beautiful butterfly, Daniele!