Mola, Tuscany: Return of the Little Butterflies Believed to Be Gone

To witness the return to sharpening stone of the butterfliesnow given up for disappearance, it is Legambiente Tuscan Archipelago.

What has small dimensions often escapes attention, is hardly noticed or not at all. Perhaps this is also why, apart from the fact that it is not too common, there are few reports of a small butterfly, so much so that it is doubtful whether it is still present in Elban territory. This is what we also read in the “Quaderno del Parco – The butterflies of the Tuscan archipelago” regarding Pyrgus armoricanusan inconspicuous little butterfly, of the family Hesperides (Hesperiidae), very different from other butterflies, with a more “full-bodied” body, even in small size, to make them resemble moths (even if the separation between butterflies and moths is purely utilitarian and has no scientific classification value). The P. armoricanus it also has a frantic flight and is not easy to spot.

Roberto Barsaglini, park guide, photographer and the board of Legambiente Arcipelago Toscano

Barsaglini took the photos and then sent them to Leonardo Dapporto, a famous entomologist from the University of Florence. It is the same inventor of the Ornella Casnati Butterfly Reserve. In addition, he is also the author of many studies on moths and their diversity.

Bravo Roberto, this is thearmoricanus, which appears on average once every two years, is one of the less common species of Elba. Soon we will be working on possible extinctions in the Tuscan Islands and this is a good figure to confirm armoricanus on Elba.

Leonardo Daporto, entomologist from the University of Florence

Mola and the area undergoing re-naturalization continue to surprise. There, the Verdeblu Room of the PNAT was born from the management of Legambiente and Diversamente Marinai. Bersaglini concludes:

After photographing more common members of the same family, such as the Alcea (Carcharodus alceae) and the Thymelicus acteon, I have also been able to photograph the elusive Pyrgus armoricanus several times in recent days. And if “small” doesn’t necessarily conflict with “interesting”, it doesn’t even conflict with “beautiful”.