Astarte Fritillary
Boloria astarte (Doubleday, [1847])

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Diagnosis: This species is the largest (wingspan: 41 to 50 mm) of the lesser fritillaries. The tips of the wings are more pointed than in the Alberta Fritillary. The upperside is orange with black markings. On the hindwing underside there is an orange band along the margin marked by black and white spots. The basal part of the wings has a reddish ground colour crossed by a wide whitish or buff band.

Subspecies: There are two subspecies in Canada. The nominate subspecies is found from northern British Columbia (57° N) southward; subspecies distincta, which is more dusky with a more orange, less contrasting, hindwing underside, occurs in Alaska, Yukon, and adjacent northwestern BC, and western Northwest Territories.

Range: This is a species of northwestern North America and northeastern Siberia. In Canada, it flies in the high mountains of western Alberta and central British Columbia north to the British Mountains in Yukon, and in the Northwest Territories in the Richardson and Mackenzie Mountains close to the Yukon border. Its range extends into the U.S. in Montana and Washington.

Similar Species: The Alberta Fritillary (B. aiberta) is similar. [compare images]

Early Stages: These have not been described, but the larvae are known to feed on Spotted Saxifrage (Saxifraga bronchialis).

Abundance: It can be fairly common but difficult to find and follow in its localized, often windy, rockslide habitat.

Astarte Fritillary (Boloria astarte distincta). Dempster Highway, km 155, YT. J.D. Lafontaine

Flight Season: The Astarte Fritillary flies from mid-June until mid-August. Adults fly every year in most locations, but some populations fly only every second year.

Habits: The Astarte Fritillary lives in one of the least visited of habitats, high rocky ridges and rockslides in mountains above the timberline. It is a swift wary flyer, with the males cruising the ridges in a search for females.

Remarks: There is still more research needed on the status of the two subspecies of Boloria astarte. Some researchers suspect that they may be distinct species.

© 2002. This material is reproduced with permission from The Butterflies of Canada by Ross A. Layberry, Peter W. Hall, and J. Donald Lafontaine. University of Toronto Press; 1998. Specimen photos courtesy of John T. Fowler.

The Toronto Entomologists' Association thanks Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada for providing the content and computer code for this web page.