Discestra microdon (Guenée, 1852)

Host plants:
Hippocrepis comosa (horseshoe vetch)

Habitat:
Discestra microdon inhabits nutrient-poor grasslands and alpine meadows on limestone up to about 2000m above sea level.

Life cycle:
The pupa hibernates. Adults can be found from May to June and occasionally in mid-summer in a partial second generation. In the Alps, the adults can be observed in June and July. I found larvae in the Allgaeu Alps and in Motafon in August during the day open at the host plant. They somewhat resemble those of Colias australis.

Endangerment: endangered

Endangerment factors:
Discestra microdon is endangered outside the Alps due to the loss of nutrient-poor grasslands (succession and land use of man).

Remarks:
Discestra microdon occurs from Europe to Central Asia.