A large butterfly common in North Africa, southern Europe and as far as Central Asia. In Israel it is common mainly on Mount Hermon in the months of May to July. It is also occasionally seen in northern the Golan Heights and in the Finger of Galilee. It was seen and captured once (May, 1994) in Gush Etzion, where the host plant can also be found – the modest violet. Its wingspan is about 80 mm. Its size and elegant colors earned it the English name Cardinal. This is a butterfly that can fly high and fast, but usually it flies slowly and low among the flowers. It produces one generation a year.
The adult butterfly undergoes aestivation (summer dormancy), after which in the months of September and October the female lays the eggs on the ground and on dry plants near the modest violet. The egg is yellowish.
The hatching larva is brown with a dark head and is hairy. In its youth the larva undergoes winter diapause until spring. In spring, when the violet grows, it awakens from its sleep and begins its activity. It grows quickly and its color changes to dark brown; its back is black and has orange spots and stripes on it. The larva has fleshy, long, thin, and hairy horns. Its maximum size is about 40 mm.
The pupa is brown in color and about 25 mm in size. Its period is about one to two weeks.