Aulocera brahminoides explained

Aulocera brahminoides is a brown (Satyrinae) butterfly that is found in the Himalayas.[1] [2]

Range

The butterfly is found in the Himalayas including Sikkim, the Chumbi Valley and Tibet.[1] [3]

Status

In 1932 William Harry Evans reported that the species was rare in the Chumbi Valley.[3]

Description

Earlier Aulocera brahminoides was considered a subspecies of A. brahminus.[3]

Aulocera brahminoides is 50 to 60 mm in wingspan and its smaller than A. brahminus.[3]

The narrow-banded satyrs are large, powerfully built Himalayan butterflies which are black or very dark brown above. They are characterised by a white discal band across both wings. The hindwing band is narrow and even in width. The white discal spots in 1 to 4 along the inner edge of the forewing are in line. The wings are rounded with convex termens and have chequered fringes. A dark apical spot or ocellus is present on the forewing. The under hindwing is dark below, with beautiful white variegations not as prominent as the dark background.[3] [4]

The tegumen is gradually sloped to the tip.[3]

In A. brahminus, the under-forewing apical ocellus is well-defined and prominently pupilled while in A. brahminoides it is less well defined, much smaller and darker. The upper-hindwing discal band to dorsum, which is a characteristic feature in A. brahminus is much curved in the case of A. brahminoides.[3]

See also

References

. Mark Alexander Wynter-Blyth . Butterflies of the Indian Region . 1957 . Bombay, India . . 978-8170192329 .

Notes and References

  1. http://ftp.funet.fi/pub/sci/bio/life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/papilionoidea/nymphalidae/satyrinae/aulocera/ "Aulocera Butler, 1867"
  2. LepIndex shows this taxon as Satyrus swaha.[{{LepIndex |id=145074 |name=Satyrus swaha}}] LepIndex considers the genus Aulocera Butler, 1867; Ent. mon. Mag. 4: 121, TS: Satyrus brahminus Blanchard. to be a junior subjective synonym of Satyrus Latreille 1810 Cons. gén. Anim. Crust. Arach. Ins.: 355, 440, TS: Papilio actaea Linnaeus.[{{LepIndex |id=144610 |name=Satyrus}}]
  3. Book: Evans . William Harry Evans

    . W.H. . William Harry Evans . The Identification of Indian Butterflies . 2nd . Mumbai, India . . 1932 . 116, ser no D11.1 . as subspecies of A. brahminus.

  4. Book: Wynter-Blyth, Mark Alexander . Mark Alexander Wynter-Blyth

    . Mark Alexander Wynter-Blyth . Butterflies of the Indian Region . 1957 . Bombay, India . . 978-8170192329 . 108–109 .