*In March 2025, the Academy of the Hebrew Language decided to change the term "Jerusalem fritillary" to "Ariel's fritillary".

Its previous name, thistle fritillary - Melitaea phoebe referred to a different species, and therefore its name was recently changed (2009) to Jerusalem fritillary. The main difference (and morphologically perhaps the only one) between them is the color of the caterpillar's head: red in Jerusalem fritillary; black in thistle fritillary.
A small to medium-sized butterfly common in southeastern Europe, Turkey, and southward to Israel. In Israel it is common in most parts of the country and is absent only from the sands of the western Negev and the southern Negev. It is most common in March and April (in Mount Hermon from May to July, depending on altitude). Its wingspan is up to about 50 mm. It has one generation a year in the cool mountains and probably two generations in the lowlands and warmer places. This butterfly is territorial, flying within its territory and displaying its presence when it stands on the ground and on stones with its wings spread. There is sexual dimorphism, and the dark markings on the female are broader than those of the male, and she appears darker. In Israel there are other species of the genus Melitaea most of which are common in the north of the country and are difficult to distinguish from one another.
The female lays the eggs in large clusters on the underside of thistle leaves and other plants. The eggs are greenish in color.
The caterpillar that hatches from the egg is hairy, its color grayish. After the second molt, when it is about ten mm long, the caterpillar undergoes summer dormancy and winter diapause until January. As it grows, its color turns black and it develops orange tubercles from which dark bristles emerge. Its head is reddish. Its maximum size is about 30 mm, and it usually pupates on stones near the host plant.
The pupa is about 15 mm in size. Its color is light gray and it has dark spots. Its duration is from two weeks to a month.