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Overwintering form
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Underside of overwintering form
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Summer (Hutchinsoni) form
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Underside of Hutchinsoni form
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Larva changing into pupa (in wet weather)
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Pupa on Nettle
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Information
| UK BAP status: | Not listed |
| Local status: | Common and widespread |
| Size: | Medium. |
| Larval foodplant: | Common Nettle, Elms and Hop. |
| No. of broods: | One and a half(!) The first brood produces two forms. One is the dark overwintering form. These do not breed in the year they emerge, but overwinter and breed the following year. However some of the first brood are the lighter Hutchinsoni form, which do breed quickly to produce a second brood, which are all the dark overwintering form. The day length at a critical stage in the development of the first brood caterpillar affects which form of adult it will become. |
| Flight time(s): | May be seen in mild spells during winter, but finally emerges from hibernation in March and flies until mid May. The first brood flies mid June to early August when the second brood begins to appear. They may fly until mid October before hibernating. |
| Winter: | Hibernates as an adult on the side of a tree, camouflaged as a dead leaf. |
| Habits: | |
| Habitats: | Anywhere nectar and foodplants occur. |
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Distribution
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No. of Adults
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No. of 1km Squares
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No. of Records
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No. of Adults per record
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No. of adults per 10,000 records
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Percentage of all records
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