Samui 2012

[Painted Jezebel]

After the couple of oopsies with Brian's "P. confucius" I thought I better have a 2nd look at some of the other P. confucius.

Your broad-banded confucius is actually a female Taractrocera archias.
The clincher is the crescent spot in the centre of the left hindwing.

TL Seow

But there is the apiculus present! It can not be Taractrocera.

[Psyche]

But there is the apiculus present! It can not be Taractrocera.

You are right. After I logged off and shut down the laptop, I realised I forgot to look at the apiculus.

Also the there is a spot in space 7, which is absent in Taractocera.
So it is correctly P. confucius.

The forewing of P. pava is almost identical but the key state the spot in space 6 on the hindwing is always present and prominent. Fleming states the hindwing band extend to space 6 indicating it is a large spot.

Do you have an underside shot of this one? Once the ID is confirmed it will be useful to see how the underside looks.

TL Seow

[Painted Jezebel]

Do you have an underside shot of this one? Once the ID is confirmed it will be useful to see how the underside looks.

TL Seow

Sorry, it wanted to sunbathe so much, it opened its wings before I could get an underside shot.

[Painted Jezebel]

Week 3 was an almost total wash-out and 4 has been almost as bad!

A few from the last fortnight:
1) Melanitis phedima abdullae (Dark Evening Brown). I am always on the look out for M. zitenius auletes, for which I have a voucher specimen, but no photo. However, I think I have missed out, again.
2) Euthalia monina monina (Malay Baron) - male.
3) Gangara thrysis thrysis (Giant Redeye). This must be right, but the angle of the photo makes the upperside markings look odd.
4) Jamides sp. I know it belonfs to the Celeno group, but which one?
5) Potanthus sp. I know which ones it can not be, but I have a complete block on this Genus.
6) Baoris sp?

I did manage to see Parantica melaneus planiston (Chocolate Tiger) for the first time since 2007, but I was on my bike, and so did not have the camera to hand.

I had also hoped to find some of the single brooded species which are about at this time of year, but no luck.

[Psyche]

3. should be the female of G. lebadea, since the subapical spots are missing.
4. is J. celeno. All the striae are misaligned.
5 is P. trachala. Hindwing dark spotting; forewing spots indented margins & little overlap between spot 3 & 4.
6. should be Caltoris bromus. Partially pale antennal shaft; 2 cell spots; (slightly ochreous) brown underside.

TL Seow

[Blue Jay]

Uncle Les, the Dark Evening Brown and C. bromus shots are great!

[Painted Jezebel]

3. should be the female of G. lebadea, since the subapical spots are missing.
4. is J. celeno. All the striae are misaligned.
5 is P. trachala. Hindwing dark spotting; forewing spots indented margins & little overlap between spot 3 & 4.
6. should be Caltoris bromus. Partially pale antennal shaft; 2 cell spots; (slightly ochreous) brown underside.

TL Seow

Thanks, Seow.

Re 3) - Below is the underside. I noticed the apparant lack of subapical spots, but felt that the position of the existing forewing spots discounted G. lebedea, no hindwing pale band, and it seemed too large as well.
Re 4) Blast.... still trying to find a decent shot of J. pura, or another, as yet, unrecorded member of this group.
Re 5) Thanks, I had wondered.
Re 6) I really can not tell these genera apart from the undersides. Mental block here !

Thanks Brian for your kind comment.

[Banded Yeoman]

the gangara looks like g. thrysis to me.

The hindwing does have a number of pale bands, suggesting it could not be lebadea. Maybe this is due to wear nd tear, but the other point that bothers me is the pale apex, which is evident in thrusis but not in lebadea.

What do think?