Arhopala eumolphus explained

Arhopala eumolphus, the green oakblue, is a lycaenid butterfly found in the Indomalayan realm. The species was first described by Pieter Cramer in 1780.

Description

A.eumolphus is recognisable by the males showing above a bright green lustre; but it has not been decided whether some of these green forms do not differ so much from each other as to be dealt with as separate species. — Typical specimens are from Northern India, from the rainy season. Male abundantly emerald-green with a golden lustre, the jet-black marginal band being narrow on the forewing and broad on the hindwing. Female above dark red-brown with a violettish-blue reflection in the basal portion; hindwing with 1 small tail. In tagore Fruhst., from Assam, the male is smaller, but it has a broader black marginal band than specimens from Sikkim. In the female of this form the blue colour above is darker, butit extends farther across the wing. —^[1]

Range

The butterfly is mostly seen in India, ranging from West Bengal and Sikkim to Arunachal Pradesh, and is also found in Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar.^[2] Hainan, Southeast Asia, Sumatra, Java, Palawan.

Subspecies

• A. e. eumolphus Sikkim, Assam, Myanmar, Thailand, Hainan
• A. e. maxwelli (Distant, 1885) Mergui, Myanmar, southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaya, Sumatra, Borneo, Bangka - much broader, rounder wings; here the blue reflection of the female is still farther expanded, almost across the whole surface of the wings.
• A. e. adonias (Hewitson, 1862) Java- shows a particularly grey-tinged ground colour of the under surface, on which metallic anal spots show a silvery gloss; the female is above lighter blue
• A. e. caesarion Fruhstorfer, 1914 Sumatra female smaller than specimens from Malacca, and the female above exhibits a broader dark marginal band.
• A. e. aristomachus Fruhstorfer, 1914 Palawan -female very light blue with a broad dark marginal band; beneath with very dark, very contrasting longitudinal bands.

External links

• Web site: Savela . Markku . December 25, 2018 . Arhopala eumolphusCramer, [1780]) ]. Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms . January 12, 2020.
• Web site: Takanami . Yusuke . Seki . Yasuo . amp . 2001 . Genus Arhopala (Plate D) . A Synonymic List of Lycaenidae from the Philippines . https://web.archive.org/web/20011006193750/http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~EY4Y-TKNM/Arhopala-Phil/Arhopala-D.html . October 6, 2001 . Internet Archive. With images.

Cited references

1. Seitz, A. Band 9: Abt. 2, Die exotischen Großschmetterlinge, Die indo-australischen Tagfalter, 1927, 1197 Seiten 177 Tafeln
2. Isaac Kehimkar (2008) The Book of Indian Butterflies, Bombay Natural History Society, Oxford University Press