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The Trojan horse of the butterflies
What makes the Black-spotted Large Blue butterfly so special and so endangered?
© | Chris van Swaay
11 January 2023
Phengaris arion’s behavioural ecology is unique: by allowing its larvae to be carried away by ants to their nests, the butterfly young can gorge on ant larvae ̶ albeit at the risk of becoming prey themselves. This intriguing life cycle fascinates our entomologist Elia Guariento, making the Black-spotted Large Blue one of his favorite butterflies. Although this infiltrator is rare and on the globally endangered list, Elia was able to document the species in certain South Tyrolean grasslands.
