Coenonympha gardetta (Prunner, 1798)

Host plants:
The caterpillars feed on grasses.

Habitat:
Coenonympha gardetta colonizes alpine meadows and grassy, rocky slopes from about 1500m up to 2600m above sea level. The butterflies can be encountered quite numerous (especially in only moderately dense growing meadows).

Life cycle:
A single generation flies from June to August. The caterpillar overwinters.

Endangerment factors:
Coenonympha gardetta is not endangered, but it loses locally habitats due to tourism and overgrazing.

Remarks:
Coenonympha gardetta is close to Coenonympha arcania. This species is lacking at this altitude (but some contact zones in the Southwestern Alps). The distribution ranges from the French Massif Central across the Alps to the Balkans.