Meadow Brown

Meadow Brown
Female
Mounted
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nymphalidae
Genus:	Maniola
Species:	M. jurtina
Binomial name
Maniola jurtina (Linnaeus, 1758)

The Meadow Brown, Maniola jurtina, is a butterfly found in European meadows, where its larvae feed on grasses, such as Sheep's Fescue.

Male

Female

Similar species are Gatekeeper (which prefers to rest with its wings open) and Small Heath (which is smaller).

There is marked sexual dimorphism in this species. Males are less colorful, with smaller eyespots and much reduced orange areas on the upper forewings. They are also much more active and range far about, while females fly less and often may not away from the area where they grew up.

A variable number of smaller eyespots are usually found on the hindwing undersides. These may number up to 12 per individual butterfly, with up to 6 on each wing. The factors that govern polymorphism in this trait are not resolved, although a number of theories have been proposed (Stevens 2005). On the other hand, the evolutionary significance of the upperwing eyespots is more obvious: The more active males have a markedly more cryptic upperside pattern, whereas the females have more often opportunity to present their eyespots in a sudden display of colors and patterns that presumably make neophobic predators hesitate so that the butterfly has better chances of escaping.

Food plants

Rough Meadow Grass Poa trivialis, Smooth Meadow Grass Poa pratensis

References

• Stevens, Martin (2005): The role of eyespots as anti-predator mechanisms, principally demonstrated in the Lepidoptera. Biol. Rev. 80(4): 573–588. doi:10.1017/S1464793105006810 (HTML abstract)

This Satyrinae article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Satyrinae stubs Maniola Butterflies and moths of Europe British butterflies Animals described in 1758 Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу Condensin Otto Bauer Look at other dictionaries: meadow-brown — meadow brownˈ noun A butterfly of the Satyridae • • • Main Entry: ↑meadow …   Useful english dictionary meadow brown — noun : any of several satyr butterflies; especially : a British butterfly (Maniola jurtina) having restricted orange markings on the upper surface of the wings of the male * * * meadow brown, any brown or grayish butterfly of a family that has… …   Useful english dictionary meadow brown — noun a common butterfly having brown and orange wings with small eyespots. [Maniola jurtina.] …   English new terms dictionary Oriental Meadow Brown — Figure of underside of a female (left) and a male (right) from Seitz Scientific classification Kingdom …   Wikipedia meadow — n. 1 a piece of grassland, esp. one used for hay. 2 a piece of low well watered ground, esp. near a river. Phrases and idioms: meadow brown a common brown butterfly, Maniola jurtina. meadow grass a perennial creeping grass, Poa pratensis. meadow… …   Useful english dictionary brown — adjective 1》 of a colour produced by mixing red, yellow, and blue, as of dark wood or rich soil. 2》 dark skinned or suntanned. noun 1》 brown colour, pigment, or material. 2》 used in names of various butterflies with mainly brown wings, e.g.… …   English new terms dictionary Meadow Bunting — Conservation status Least Concern (IUCN 3.1) …   Wikipedia Meadow Pipit — Conservation status Least Concern ( …   Wikipedia Meadow Lane — Stadium Der Haydn Green Family Stand (Mitte) in der Meadow Lane in Nottingham Daten Ort …   Deutsch Wikipedia Meadow Lane — Full name Meadow Lane Stadium Location Nottingham, England Coordinates …   Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”