About Pseudophilotes baton panoptes (Hübner)
This entry, originally published in Seitz, describes the taxon originally named L. baton Bgstr. (synonyms: amphion Esp., hylas Schiff.) (plate 79 d). The upperside of the wings is blackish; males have more or less blue dusting, the forewing has a distinct discocellular spot, and the fringes are spotted. On the underside, there are numerous ocelli on a leaden grey background; the ocelli are larger on the forewing, which usually even has ocelli near its base. In typical specimens, the hindwing has red-yellow spots before the margin. This group is found across Central and South Europe (excluding England), ranging from Pomerania and the Baltic Provinces to the Mediterranean, and from Belgium to Central Asia (Altai).
A form called ab. panoptes Hbn. (synonym: argus minutus Esp.) (plate 79 e), now classified as Pseudophilotes panoptes (Hübner, [1813]), is very similar to true baton on the underside but lacks reddish yellow anal spots; it occurs singly among ordinary baton across most of the range, and is especially common in southern Europe. A similar form from Spain and North Africa, now Pseudophilotes abencerragus (Pierret, 1837), is abencerragus Pier. (plate 79 d); it lacks the reddish yellow submarginal band on the underside of the hindwing, the underside of the hindwing is a purer, paler dust-grey tint, and the ocelli are distinct but very thin, while the upperside has very uniform color. On the southern slopes of the Atlas Mountains, on very arid, almost desert-like slopes, a very small dwarf-form was frequently caught in spring; it is barely half the size of the common abencerragus of northern Algeria, and is named famelica form. nov. (plate 79 e).
In Anterior Asia, males have brighter colour that often has a silvery white sheen; this is clara Christ., now treated as a subspecies of Pseudophilotes vicrama. vicrama Moore, now a full species Pseudophilotes vicrama (Moore, 1865) from Afghanistan, lacks a distinct discocellular spot on the upperside of the forewing, and also lacks dark marginal dots on the upperside of the hindwing. cashmirensis Moore, now a subspecies of Pseudophilotes vicrama from Kashmir, has a distinct black discocellular spot on the upperside of the forewing matching European forms; additionally, the forewing has whitish marginal lunules and dark veins, and the hindwing has marginal dots.
The larva is strongly carinate laterally, with somewhat swollen segments. It is light green with a blackish head and rosy-red pear-shaped dorsal spots, divided by a purple dorsal line and accompanied laterally by white dots; the stigmata are white. It is active in April and again in July, feeding on Thymus, particularly on the flowers; in captivity, it often attacks other caterpillars. The pupa is roundish, obtuse, and smooth; it is clay-yellow with darker wing cases, and develops on the ground. Adult butterflies are on the wing in May and again in August and September. They frequent very sunny grassy hills and slopes, woodland clearings, and broad sunny roads. They usually fly very short distances, and settle on grasses and the tops of herbage with their wings half open and widely separated. Their flight is slow, somewhat hopping, and the butterflies are not shy. While they occur more singly in Central Europe, they are extremely common in South Europe and North Africa, where they often fly in great abundance. In the extreme east of their distribution range, in Kashmir, they are local but very common (per Butler). Larvae feed on thyme, Clinopodium acinos, lavender, and Mentha.
