About Hipparchia hermione Linnaeus, 1764
Hipparchia hermione, commonly known as the rock grayling, is a butterfly species belonging to the family Nymphalidae. This species is distributed across Central Europe, Southern Europe, Eastern Europe, North Africa, Anatolia, and the Caucasus. It has a wingspan of 27–34 millimetres (1.1–1.3 in). The base wing colour is dark brown, with a white submarginal band bordered by an interrupted fringe, and a large black ocellus at the apex of the forewing. The hindwing has a small ocellus with a very discrete pupil. The underside of the forewing matches the upperside: it is brown with a white submarginal band and a black ocellus with a white pupil at the apex, while the hindwing underside is marbled with brown and white with a broad white band. This species exhibits no sexual dimorphism. Hipparchia hermione is similar to Hipparchia fagi, but the deep dark basal area of both its wings contrasts much more sharply with the light band on the underside. On the hindwing, this light band is almost pure white, and in turn contrasts conspicuously with the broad dark distal margin. The noticeable contrast of the pattern on the hindwing underside is especially clear in males; even in duller-coloured females, the band on the underside of the hindwing remains quite distinct, although it is sparsely sprinkled with black. Hipparchia hermione is also smaller than Hipparchia fagi. Adult butterflies fly from June to September, and inhabit steep rocky slopes, open forest, forest margins, forest clearings, and shrubland. The larvae feed on various types of grass.
