Callimorpha quadripunctaria (Poda, 1761)

Host plants:
The caterpillars are polyphagous, but prefer Boraginaceae such as Echium or Lithospermum, if available.

Habitat:
Callimorpha quadripunctaria is characteristic of clear, alternating wet and dry or general dry forests with flower-rich transition zones (thistles, Origanum vulgare, Eupatorium cannabinum) and also of bushy, rocky slopes bordering deciduous forest (heat-loving species). The comparison species Callimorpha dominula needs instead more cool, moist conditions.

Life cycle:
Callimorpha quadripunctaria hibernates as a caterpillar and is mature in May or early June. The larva lives much more hidden than those of Callimorpha dominula. I found caterpillars concealed in the vegetation around eaten Lithospermum and Echium an others in bushy, partly abandoned dry calcareous grasslands at forest edges. I also beated mature caterpillars in a bright coppice forest from sallow in late May/early June.

Endangerment factors:
Callimorpha quadripunctaria is locally endangered due to the decline of suitable habitat (dense afforestation, leveling, housing developments). But it is still relatively common in appropriate landscapes. For no apparent reason, Callimorpha quadripunctaria was included in the habitats list of the European Union. There would be truly more appropriate species for the creation of protection zones.

Remarks:
Callimorpha quadripunctaria is known from the so-called Valley of Butterflies in Rhodes (Greece), where numerous butterflies meet for aestivation. This valley was therefore quickly turned into a tourist attraction with all necessary infrastructure.

The overall distribution is ranging from Spain to Central and Southern Europe to the Near East.