A few from the Amalfi Coast

[moloch]

Here are a few photos from the Amalfi Coast of Italy. It is a stunningly beautiful place and even more scenic than Cinque Terre. My wife and I stayed in hotel right off the main piazza of the little town of Amalfi for several nights.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfimap.jpg

My wife and I usually went for walks along the coast in the early morning. Later, she would shop while I walked into the hills to see what might be about. The habitat along the trails into the hills mostly passed through vineyards and olive groves. Butterflies were the most common where there were patches of flowering weeds.

Amalfi area:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfi1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfi12.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfi6.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfi8.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfi14.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfi15.jpg


I usually climbed the hill in the background to find butterflies:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/AmalfiAtreni1.jpg

[moloch]

We also visited the stunning Positano.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Positano1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Positano2.jpg


My daughters were with us at the time and they shopped with my wife while I walked up the moutain through beautiful pine-oak woodland. The trail system here was excellent. Butterflies and Wall Lizards were numerous in this habitat. I saw the spectacular Two-tailed Pasha (Charaxes jasius) on several occasions but these were always in flight.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Positano3.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Positano4.jpg


Wall Browns (Lasiommata megera) were fairly common in the pine-oak zone. They would usually flick the upper wing upwards when I took a photo. This exposed the eyespot that was often obscured when the butterfly was resting.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Lasiommatamegera2WallBrown.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Lasiommatamegera1WallBrown.jpg


Lesser Woodland Grayling (Hipparchia genava) (thanks, Les).
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/HipparchiagenavaLesserWoodlandGrayling3.jpg

Tree Grayling (Hipparchia statilinus) (thanks, Les): Not a good shot but it shows the typical behaviour of the butterfly. These butterflies usually landed on rocks or on tree trunks.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/HipparchiagenavaLesserWoodlandGrayling5.jpg

[moloch]

Tree Grayling (Hipparchia statilinus) (thanks, Les):
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/HipparchiagenavaLesserWoodlandGrayling6.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/HipparchiagenavaLesserWoodlandGrayling4.jpg


Lang's Short-tailed Blue (Leptotes pirithus).
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Leptotispirithus1LangsShort-tailedBlue.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Leptotispirithus1aLangsShort-tailedBlue.jpg


Geranium Bronze (Cacyreus marshalli)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Cacyreusmarshalli2GeraniumBronze.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Cacyreusmarshalli1GeraniumBronze.jpg


Long-tailed Blue (Lampides boeticus)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Lampidesboeticus1Long-tailedBlue.jpg

[moloch]

Common Blues (Polyommatus icarus). Les suggested that the brown butterflies might be Brown Argus (Aricia agestis) or a female Escher's Blue (Plebicula escheri) but an underside shot would be needed to confirm. There seemed to a good deal of interaction between the blue and brown butterflies.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/PolyommatusicarusCommonBlue1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/PolyommatusicarusCommonBlue3.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/PolyommatusicarusCommonBlue5.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/PolyommatusicarusCommonBlue4.jpg



Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeus): Common in this area.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/LycaenaphlaeusSmallCopper1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/LycaenaphlaeusSmallCopper2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/LycaenaphlaeusSmallCopper3.jpg

[moloch]

Small Heath (Coenonypha pamphilus)?
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/CoenonymphapamphilusSmallHeath2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/satyrinae2-1.jpg


Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/RedAdmiral2bVanessaatalanta.jpg


Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/VanessacarduiPaintedLady2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/VanessacarduiPaintedLady1.jpg


Southern White Admiral (Limenitis reducta)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/LimenitisreductaSouthernWhiteAdmiral1.jpg


... more tomorrow

[Painted Jezebel]

David, I am very jealous. The Amalfi is a part of Italy I always wanted to visit.

Re the butts:
The first two Graylings are different species. The first one is new to me. It was not described back in 1970. Apparently, when first described, it was considered a subspecies of the Rock Grayling (Hipparchia alcyone). When, and why it was given specific status, I do not know. However, they are impossible to tell apart from field shots, and both are found in Italy. I have no reason to change your ID of H. genava.

The second Grayling is a Tree Grayling (Hipparchia statilinus), note the forewing white spots below the subapical spot.

The next two Graylings are also H. statilinus.

The brown Blue is not the female of the Common Blue. The spots are too large and extensive. There are a couple of species it could be, Brown Argus (Aricia agestis) and a female Escher's Blue (Plebicula escheri). Without an underside shot, I would not want to speculate.

The Small Heath is a quite variable species. I, again, have no reason to doubt your ID.

[moloch]

Thanks for your help, Les. I will return to the area where I saw the brown lycaenids and take underside photos.

[moloch]

Silver-washed Fritillary (Argynnis paphia): looked old and tattered.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Silver-washedFritillary1-1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Silver-washedFritillary4.jpg


Small White (Pieris rapae)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/pieridwhite1.jpg


Swallowtail (Papilio machaon)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Swallowtail1Papiliomachaon-1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Swallowtail2Papiliomachaon-1.jpg


Mallow Skipper (Carcharodus alceae)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/MallowSkipper.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/MallowSkipper2.jpg


Pygmy Skipper (Gegenes pumilio): tiny skipper that seems to be quite wary. I have only seen it a few times.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/skipper1.jpg

[moloch]

Clouded Yellow (Coleus crocea)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Coleuscrocea2-1.jpg


Wall Geckos (Tarentola mauritanica) were fairly common. They seem to be active by day and sometimes were sunning themselves in full view in the mornings. I usually saw them on rock walls along the roads. They were wary and extremely fast.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/gecko2.jpg


Wall Lizards (Lacertids) were abundant. They were as confusing as the Lycaenids with male/female/juvenile/breeding/non-breeding patterns. Several species were possible and I think that I probably have 3 here but have not sorted them with certainty.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard3.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard9.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard10.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard11.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard8.jpg

[moloch]

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard6.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/WallLizard7.jpg


These interesting flowers grew in cool, shady areas along the trails.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/flower1-1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/flower2.jpg


I should be adding more photos over the next week since we will revisit Amalfi and Positano for a few days.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Amalfi9.jpg

[Painted Jezebel]

The Pygmy Skipper is correct.

The flower is a Cyclamen. They produce leaves after the flower. They are very popular in English gardens, but they flower in Spring in England I recall, strange to see them so late in the season.:thinking:

[Silverstreak]

David,

Beautiful series!!

..... kind of made Les a wee bit envious and home sick???:bsmile:

:cheers:

[Painted Jezebel]

Envious, yes, of all that wonderful Italian food and wine. Home sick...definitely not!!!!!!!!:grin2:

[moloch]

Thanks, Sunny and Les. Interesting about the flower, Les. I saw lots of these today on a walk down the hill from Santagata to Sorrento. As you said, they are leafless at the moment ... just clusters of flowers. There are a few other flowering plants that I think must be native as well. I will take a few shots.


Envious, yes, of all that wonderful Italian food and wine
The food and wine are indeed excellent. Both are cheap here in the village where we are staying. I usually buy freshly made gnocchi, ravioli or other noodles and cook these for dinner at night. The fresh anchovies and calamari are also good. Wines are great for the price. A bottle of reasonable quality local wine only costs $5-$10. This is not the place to go to loose weight! We are walking but not enough in Santagata.

Les, have you ever tried Lemoncello? Good but potent stuff made from lemons. I think that it is a southern Italian grog.

[Painted Jezebel]

Les, have you ever tried Lemoncello? Good but potent stuff made from lemons. I think that it is a southern Italian grog.

No, never tried it. It must be a local brew, which has not been taken up by the export/import industry yet.

[Glorious Begum]

Very nice series there. :cheers:

[moloch]

Thanks, LC.

Here are a few more from the past week.

Not a good shot but here is Cleopatra (Gonepteryx cleopatra). It was interesting to me to see that this butterfly was named by Linnaeus. I have only seen a few of these. Some were quite orange above.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/pierid1a.jpg


Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina)? Strange, but I did not see any of these earlier this week but bumped into four today.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/ManiolajurtinaMeadowBrown1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/ManiolajurtinaMeadowBrown3.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/ManiolajurtinaMeadowBrown2.jpg


Les, this is a bad shot but the only one that I could take. The butterfly constantly landed in grass clumps like this. It had two eye-spots on the upper wing. Is it a Grayling (Hipparchia semele)? It is the only individual of the species that I have encountered.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/satyrinae3.jpg


Speckled Wood (Parargea egeria): not nearly as common here as they were in Cinque Terre.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Parargeaegeria2SpeckledWood.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Parargeaegeria1SpeckledWood.jpg



Clouded Yellow (Coleus crocea)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Coleuscrocea3-1.jpg

[moloch]

I found more of the brown butterflies but don't know if they were the same as the female that I originally posted. I am hoping that you can help with these, Les.

#1. female Escher's Blue (Plebicula escheri) (thanks, Les)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/BrownArgus3-1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/BrownArgus4-1.jpg


#2 female Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus) (thanks, Les)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Blue1.jpg


#3 too worn for positive identification
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/blue2.jpg


Small Copper (Lycaena phaeus): I really like these colourful butterflies.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/LycaenaphlaeusSmallCopper4-1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/LycaenaphlaeusSmallCopper5-1.jpg


Swallowtail (Papilio machaon)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/Swallowtail3Papiliomachaon.jpg


Large Skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus): highly cropped shot. I cannot get within several meters of these wary skippers.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/skipper2-1.jpg

[moloch]

Wall Geckos (Tarentola mauritanica) were common. These were day active geckos that basked before temps were too high. In the afternoon, I still saw them but they were usually on the shady sides of boulders or rock walls.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/gecko3.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/gecko5.jpg

This area seems to be good for snakes. I have bumped into several over the last few days. I think that the following is a juvenile Western Whip Snake (Hierophis viridiflavus)
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/snake1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/snake4.jpg


... and adults
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/snake10.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/snake11.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/snake13-1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi/snake12.jpg

[WillFolsom]

David: Worried that the trip was a bust! No highly venomous snakes with bad attitudes! Finally, a break from all that scenery and butterflies! Glad you are having fun. WIlliam

[bluefin]

Another beautiful series of a great variety of shots from you David. :thumbsup:

:cheers: :cheers:

[Painted Jezebel]

I have no reason to question any of the IDs you have made.

I did need to double check your Cleopatra, as there is another member of that Genus to be found there, and the females of these species (this is a female), are very difficult to tell apart. The only difference is that there is a very faint orange streak above the median vein through the cell on the underside forewing. It is just visible, so you are right in that it is Gonepteryx cleopatra europaea.

The males are much easier to tell apart. Cleopatra has an obvious orange-red markings on the forewing with just the margins yellow. Any bright yellow forewings would be the Brimstone, Gonepteryx rhamni.

Your 'Browns' are more difficult. I think you may have 3 species there, and I will need to revisit your earlier photos as well. I will get back to you on this.

[Painted Jezebel]

The first of the 'browns' is, I am sure, a female Escher's Blue (Plebicula escheri).

The second is almost certainly the Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus).

The third is too worn, and the underside could be any one of 5 or 6 species, sorry, this remains a UFO.

[moloch]

Thanks very much for the help, Les. I will update the names accordingly.

Thanks for the comments, William and Nelson.

William, there should be vipers here on the Amalfi Coast but so far, no sniff of those at all. In November, an old herping friend from AZ will come over to Australia and we will head to outback Queensland for a couple of weeks. I want to show him the Windorah/Dajarra areas and look for Fierce Snakes. They are hard to find but we surely will encounter other lovely elapids. My friend and I used to search for snakes in the deserts of California and Mexico back in the late '60s early '70s.

[moloch]

One of the highlights of our visit was the walk known as "Sentiero Degli Dei" or the "Path of the Gods". As you can see in the shots below, the trail traversed some big cliffs so it was necessary to keep an eye on the path. If careless here, one might meet the gods sooner rather than later.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/SentierodegliDei2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/SentierodegliDei3.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/SentierodegliDei9.jpg



... odd, narrow cypress trees grew on some of the slopes.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/SentierodegliDei8.jpg

... overlooking Positano
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/SentierodegliDei4d.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/SentierodegliDei7.jpg

[moloch]

On our second stay at Amalfi, we also walked the mountain to Ravello. The views along the way were excellent.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Amalfi36.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/amalfi18.jpg


I found a trail along the stream valley above Amalfi. This was interesting since it was densely wooded. Also, there were so many ancient ruins along the way. These were always too shady for photos but here are habitat shots of the area.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Amalfi25.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Amalfi37.jpg

... typical view along the trails:
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Amalfi29.jpg

... high in the hills above Amalfi
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Amalfi26.jpg


Rock walls like this always had flowers and were a good place to find butterflies.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/flower3.jpg

Don't know the name of this plant but it was attactive to many butterflies.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/flower6.jpg

[moloch]

Hummingbird Hawk-Moths (Macroglossum stellatarum) were common at the mountain wildflowers.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/hummingbirdmoth.jpg

... don't know the name of this flower but the hummingbird moths were often feeding from these.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/flower4.jpg


Clouded Yellows (Coleus crocea) were common. This one was very cooperative and allowed me to get quite close for photos. They usually were fast and wary.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Coleuscrocea4.jpg


Les, I need help with this one. I only saw a few of the whiter yellows. They seemed to be smaller than the Clouded Yellow above. When looking through the Italian butterfly website, I could not decide whether these were females of C. crocea or whether they might have been something different such as Berger's Clouded Yellows (C. facariensis).
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/ColiasalfacariensisBergersCloudedYellow.jpg


This, to me, looks like a Mountain Small White (Pieris ergane), but I am not certain. I learned on this trip that there are a number of "Cabbage Whites" in Europe.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Pierid4.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Pierid5.jpg


I finally was able to take a few shots of Bath Whites (Pontia edusa). I see them often but they rarely seem to stop at flowers and when they do, the visits are brief.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/PontiaedusaBathWhite2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/PontiaedusaBathWhite1.jpg

[moloch]

These Lesser Woodland Graylings (Hipparchia genava) were numerous in the stream valley above Amalfi. They often would lay their wings against rocks while basking in the morning.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satHipparchiagenavaLesserWoodlandGrayling10.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satHipparchiagenavaLesserWoodlandGrayling11.jpg


Tree Graylings (Hipparchia statilinus) were the most common satyrinae. They also would lay their wings flat on rocks or ferns when basking.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satHipparchiastatilinusTreeGrayling1.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Hipparchiastatilinus11_400TreeGrayling.jpghttp://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Hipparchiastatilinus10_400TreeGrayling.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satHipparchiastatilinusTreeGrayling3.jpg


Speckled Wood (Paragea egeria): These varied a little in colour and some were quite dark.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satParargeaegeria3_400SpeckledWood.jpghttp://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satParargeaegeria4_400SpeckledWood.jpg

[moloch]

I saw Graylings (Hipparchia semele) a few times above Positano. These would often flick open their wings with the preflash to expose the eye spots.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satHipparchiasemeleGrayling5.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/HipparchiasemeleGrayling2_400.jpghttp://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/HipparchiasemeleGrayling4_400.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satHipparchiasemeleGrayling3.jpg


Wall Browns (Lasiommata megera) were common in open areas such as along rock walls.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satLasiommatamegera4WallBrown.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satLasiommatamegera3WallBrown.jpg


Meadow Browns (Maniola jurtina) were seen a few times in the stream valley above Amalfi.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/satManiolajurtinaMeadowBrown5.jpg

[Angiud]

David, beautiful pictures of my beautiful country! I miss it a bit (8 years!) b ut your holiday bring me back Italia a little bit in my heart :heart:

[moloch]

Thanks, Antonio. My wife and I are having a terrific time here in Italy. We both are enjoying the lovely scenery, cities, food and friendly people.

[Painted Jezebel]

Looks you had a nice return trip. Can you wait a day or so regarding the Clouded Yellow. I currently have no electricity at home (since Monday evening) and my laptop battery is very flat and only lasts 20 minutes or so, so I am in my local pub, but without the necessary resources?

[Silverstreak]

Haha:bsmile:

....enforce pub time for a few pints , to wean from the serious addiction to butterflies!!!

[moloch]

Looks you had a nice return trip. Can you wait a day or so regarding the Clouded Yellow. I currently have no electricity at home (since Monday evening) and my laptop battery is very flat and only lasts 20 minutes or so, so I am in my local pub, but without the necessary resources?
No problem at all.



Haha:bsmile:
....enforce pub time for a few pints , to wean from the serious addiction to butterflies!!!
:bsmile: Sounds like a good use of time when there is no computer, net or chance to photograph.

[moloch]

Swallowtail (Papilio machaon): fairly common on flowers along the rock walls.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Swallowtail5Papiliomachaon.jpg


Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta): fairly common but usually wary and hard to approach.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/RedAdmiral3Vanessaatalanta.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/RedAdmiral4Vanessaatalanta.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/RedAdmiral6Vanessaatalanta.jpg


Southern White Admiral (Limenitis reducta): scarce with only a few seen. Their undersurface is nicely marked and reminds me of a Commander. In flight, they look a little like a Neptis.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/LimenitisreductaSouthernWhiteAdmiral2.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/LimenitisreductaSouthernWhiteAdmiral3.jpg



Silver-washed Fritllary (Argynnis paphia): the male landed next to the basking female and began to display with quivering wings.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/ArgynnispaphiaSilver-washedFritillary5.jpg

... female
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/ArgynnispaphiaSilver-washedFritillary6.jpg

[moloch]

Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus): common
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/PolyommatusicarusCommonBlue4a.jpg


Lang's Short-tailed Blue (Leptotes pirithus): common
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/Leptotespirithus1LangsShort-tailedBlue.jpg



Wall Gecko (Tarentola mauritanica): common on rock walls.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/gecko6.jpg


More Wall Lizards. I think that these are Italian Wall Lizards (Podarcis siculus) but the similar Common Wall Lizard (P. muralis) is also possible.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/WallLizard12.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/WallLizard14.jpg


I found several Western Whip Snakes (Hierophis viridiflavus). These were more slender than those encountered at Sant' Agata.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/snake7WesternWhip.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/snake8WesternWhip.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c386/moloch05/Italy%202011/Amalfi%20post2/snake9WesternWhip.jpg

[Painted Jezebel]

Finally back home again. I have had a chance to look at the pale Clouded Yellow. I'm afraid that it is, to me, impossible to tell which one. The pale form of C. crocea is almost indistinguishable from Berger's Clouded Yellow (which I knew as Colias australis, but I believe the name you used has preference), the main distinguishing factors being on the upperside. It is even worse as the two species often fly together, so location does not help either. Very sorry.

[moloch]

Thanks, Les, for checking. Too bad that it is so hard to get an upper wing photo. I did not see any of these butterflies land with open wings.

I have been in a small village for a few days and have not had access to the net.