Aberbach Beach Photo

Small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae)

A hitherto very common butterfly seen here resting on an upturned boat. This specimen is looking very frayed around the edges. The main food plant of its larvae is the stinging nettle. The numbers of the Small Tortoise have fallen by as much as 80% in the last 20 years in parts of the British Isles. This is thought to be due to a parasitic fly which has moved here from southern Europe. First recorded in 1999, the Sturmia Bella larvae parasitize the caterpillars when they eat the fly eggs also laid on nettles. Adult flies emerge from the chrysalis.

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