A golden-brown butterfly with a very distractive crinkly edge to the edge of the wing. The only butterfly which it can be confused with is P. c-album which is very similar. The main distinguishing features on the upperside are that the black markings are smaller, and on the underside the silvery mark on the middle of the hindwing is L-shaped rather than C-shaped.
Given that one of the host plants, Eastern Pellitory of the Wall, grows on walls and that this species is so commonly seen basking on walls, it could be argued that human habitation and rocky areas are the major habitat for this butterfly.
Nettles Urtica dioica, Eastern Pellitory-of-the-wall Parietaria officinalis.
Widely distributed but not overly abundant. Commonly observed resting on rock faces or walls where it basks in bright sunshine.
*The information provided in the tables below is based on verified sightings of the Southern Comma submitted via this website since 1st January 2021.
Year | First | Last/latest | # Days |
---|---|---|---|
2022 | 05/05/2022 | 16/05/2022 | 11 days |
2021 | 20/02/2021 | 21/10/2021 | 243 days |
2019 | 18/08/2019 | 16/09/2019 | 29 days |
Year | Number of observations |
---|---|
2022 | 3 |
2021 | 16 |
Grand Total | 21 |
Distribution map for the Southern Comma based on the data submitted online via this website will be available below soon.
The chart below shows Southern Comma flight data by month for 2022 submitted online since 1st January 2022 to 17th May 2022.
The chart below shows Southern Comma flight data by month based on all data submitted online since 1st January 2019 to 17th May 2022.
For a list of references, please see our bibliography page.