A small to medium-sized butterfly locally common in several sites in Greece and Bulgaria and as far as southern Russia. In Israel it has been found at two sites, one north of Safed and the other at Ma'ale Efraim in the Jordan Valley. It has not been observed in Lebanon or Syria. It is common in April and May. Its wingspan is about 45 mm. It has one generation per year. A butterfly that resembles the thistle fritillary in general appearance and is difficult to distinguish from it. In Israel there are other species from the genus Melitaea, most of them common in the north of the country and difficult to distinguish from one another.
The females lay dozens of eggs together on the underside of the leaves of the spiny chicory and several other plants from the Asteraceae family. In Israel, egg-laying has been observed only on the plant Scotch thistle. The egg is greenish in color.
A hairy, pale larva hatches from the egg. As it grows, its back turns black and its belly gray. Its body has light bumps and gray bristles.
Very little is known about its life cycle and apparently it resembles the life cycle of the thistle fritillary.

Former name: Scotch thistle fritillary