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Abstract
Aricia agestis (Lycaenidae) is a widespread and not endangered species, however its biology is poorly known in Poland. Helianthemum nummularium L. (Cistaceae) and Erodium cicutarium L., Geranium pratense L., Geranium sanquineum L., and Geranium pusilum L. (Geraniaceae) were mentioned as larval host plants from Poland so far, but no data about preimaginal stages of the species were known from south-eastern part of the country. From 2009 up to 2014 many new records of imagines of A. agestis were revealed in mountain and sub-mountain zones of Podkarpacie region, where A. agestis was known from few isolated localities. Additionally, during the observations carried out in 2012 in central and south Podkarpacie region, eggs and early instar caterpillars (L1 & L2) of the second generation were found for the first time in nature on Geranium phaeum L. (Lipnik), and their occurrence on G. pratense L. was detected at the locality of Markowa. Interactions of caterpillars with ants were not recorded. In conclusion, A. agestis is in expansion in mountain and sub-mountain zones of Podkarpacie region (south-eastern Poland) and Geranium phaeum L. is established as the new larval host plants of A. agestis from Poland.
Highlights
Aricia agestis, is a species of the family of blues (Lycaenidae), showing a west and central Palearctic type of distribution
In the surveys of adult butterfly conducted in mountain and sub-mountain zones of Podkarpacie region from 2009 to 2014, A. agestis was found at 14 new sites in 11 UTM squares (10x10 km) located within seven mesoregions: Low Beskid Mts., Sanok-Turka Mts., Przemyśl Foothills, Dynów Foothills, Bukowsko Foothills, Jasło-KrosnoValley and Rzeszów Foreland, http://rcin.org.pl where in the past the species was known mainly from Bieszczady Mts and Low Beskid Mts (Bielewicz 1973, Krzywicki 1982, Przybyłowicz 2000, Olbrycht & Pączka 2004, KSIB 2014)
In one of the last comprehensive study conducted in Poland in years 1985‒1995 no locality of A. agestis in this part of Podkarpacie region was found (Buszko 1997)
Summary
Aricia agestis, is a species of the family of blues (Lycaenidae), showing a west and central Palearctic type of distribution. The species is found over the area spanning from northern Spain, through Central and Southern Europe, including Corsica, Sicily and Crete, in west and central Russia, Asia Minor, the countries of the Middle East and the Central Asia, up to the Altai and Tien Shan on the east (Hesselbarth et al 1995; Tolman & Lewington 1997; Tshikolovets 1998, 2003, 2005; Tuzov et al 2000; Kudrna 2002; Tshikolovets et al 2009; Kudrna et al 2011; Setelle et al 2011). On the Pyrenean Peninsula, on Sardinia, and in Northern Africa, occurs a closely related taxon of Aricia cramera (Eschschultz, 1821), which was treated as a separated species or as subspecies of A. agestis (Tolman & Lewington 1997, Lafranchis 2004, Tarrier & Delacre 2008, Sañudo-Restrepo et al 2012, Vodă et al 2015). According to some unconfirmed Polish reports, other species of Geranium, native to Poland, such as: cut-leaf geranium (Geranium dissectum L.), dove’s-foot geranium
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