Wingspan: 33–38 mm
Flight period of butterflies: in one generation from May to July
Larval host plants: plantain (Plantago sp.), speedwell (Veronica sp.), yellow-rattle (Rhinanthus sp.)
Dark fritillary (Melitaea britomartis or Mellicta britomartis) is a medium-sized fritillary that is visually extremely similar to the related Melitaea aurelia, from which it can be reliably distinguished only by the structure and shape of the genital apparatus. The upperside of the wings of the dark fritillary is essentially distinctly dark, dark brown to almost black. It is adorned with arcs of small orange spots. The black borders of the spots on the underside of its hindwings are distinctly emphasized.
The dark fritillary occurs in distinctly warm, sheltered habitats on grassy and shrubby areas along the forest edge. It lives in the montane zone between 300 and 900 m above sea level. The female lays a cluster of eggs on the underside of the leaves of the host plant; the hatched caterpillars spin a silken enclosure in which they feed together and also overwinter.
In Slovenia the dark fritillary is common only in the Slovenian Littoral; elsewhere it is fairly rare and limited to the warmest sites. In our country it is endangered and listed as a vulnerable species (V) on the Red List of butterflies.
