Cyprus Butterflies by Eddie John F. L. S., F. R. E. S.

A Guide to the Butterflies of Cyprus,

Cyprus Butterfly Recording Scheme and

Cyprus Butterfly Study Group





Back to Recording Scheme Page 4

Records since 2000
Records 1990 - 2000
Records prior to 1990

The selected maps show the current, known distribution within the entire island for the Paphos Blue (Glaucopsyche paphos), a common endemic species, compared with the far less common but also widely distributed Eastern Baton Blue (Pseudophilotes vicrama).

Whereas most of the Paphos Blue records are post-2000, the map for the less frequently recorded Eastern Baton Blue relies more heavily on slightly older data.

The three records for P. vicrama from Karpasia in the far north-east were provided by Christodoulos Makris in 2007 and represent the only sightings of this species from northern Cyprus in recent decades. Yet the numerous records for G. paphos indicate that the northern area has been investigated at a suitable time (the flight periods for the two species are similar), suggesting that P. vicrama is very rare in the north of the island.

It is a fact that P. vicrama is much less common than G. paphos throughout the island (only 24 out of the current total of 160 Recorders have reported seeing P. vicrama in any location in Cyprus), but the lack of more records from the north may point to the species being overlooked in favour of the common, and somewhat similar, Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus). For distinguishing characters please see the entry for Pseudophilotes vicrama and ‘Distinguishing characters of the Blues’, on Page 3.7

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