Poritia phalena

Poritia phalena, the broad-banded brilliant,[1] is a small butterfly found in India[2] and South-East Asia[3] that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family. The species was first described by William Chapman Hewitson in 1874.

Broad-banded brilliant
Simiskina phalena hayashii
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Poritia
Species:
P. phalena
Binomial name
Poritia phalena
(Hewitson, 1874)
Synonyms

Simiskina phalena (Hewitson, 1874)

Range

It occurs in South Asia from Assam in India to southern Myanmar.[2][4] As per Markku Savela, the butterfly ranges from Assam, Myanmar, Peninsular Malaya, Java, Nias, Borneo and Thailand.[3]

Status

Very rare.[2][4]

Description

It is a small butterfly with a 28 to 34 mm wingspan. The male is black above with brilliant greenish-blue streaks and spots, while the female is dark brown above with a white circular spot in the discal region of the forewing. Below, there are no bands of linked spots.[4]

Taxonomy

The butterfly was earlier[2] and continues[3] to be classified by some authorities as Simiskina phalena (Hewitson, 1874). The subspecies that occur in South Asia are:[2]

  • P. p. harterti Doherty 1889 - Assam to southern Myanmar, very rare[2]
  • P. p. hayashii (Schröder & Treadaway, 1979)
  • P. p. howarthi (H. Hayashi, 1976)
  • P. p. ilagana Osada & Hashimoto, [1987]
  • P. p. javanica Fruhstorfer - Java[3]
  • P. p. niasina Fruhstorfer - Nias[3]

See also

Cited references
  1. Beccaloni, G.; Scoble, M.; Kitching, I.; Simonsen, T.; Robinson, G.; Pitkin, B.; Hine, A.; Lyal, C., eds. (2003). "Poritia phalena". The Global Lepidoptera Names Index. Natural History Museum. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  2. Evans, W. H. (1932). The Identification of Indian Butterflies (2nd ed.). Mumbai, India: Bombay Natural History Society. p. 209, ser no H3.1.
  3. Savela, Markku (26 August 2016). "Simiskina phalena (Hewitson, 1874)". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  4. Wynter-Blyth, Mark Alexander (1957). Butterflies of the Indian Region. Bombay, India: Bombay Natural History Society. p. 253. ISBN 978-8170192329.

References
  • Haribal, Meena (1992). The Butterflies of Sikkim Himalaya and Their Natural History. Gangtok, Sikkim, India: Sikkim Nature Conservation Foundation.
  • Takanami, Yusuke & Seki, Yasuo (2001). "Genus Simiskina". A Synonymic List of Lycaenidae from the Philippines. Archived from the original on 8 July 2001 – via Internet Archive. With images.


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