Help with Rapala species please

[MrGee]

I found this Rapala recently and, unable to identify it with my limited resources, asked Les for some help (as usual). He said:

Very interesting. To be honest, I am not absolutely sure which species it is. Using C&P4 keys, I seem to come out at Rapala rhodopis. This is a rare species, and would be a great find. There is no harm in posting the photos on BC to see if anyone can help. There are a couple of very similar species which would be even more surprising to find in Cambodia, they really are not supposed to be anywhere close to your area, R. cowani and R. hades.

So, please can someone help with this ID?

Many thanks

[Commander]

Hi Gee,

The Rapala genus is well-studied by the Japanese, and there are still new discoveries at species/subspecies level. Not easy to ID and you may want to refer to our Rapala resource here.

That red patch on the forewing with near-brown hindwings could also point to R. nissa

[Psyche]

After going through the pics of all the Rapala the most likely ID is R. nissa.

R. nissa is widespread, & ? common. Called Common Flash, the mainland form usually is steely blue in both sexes, but there are examples in which an orange patch is present on the forewing.

It is highly likely that some forms may lose the irridescent blue as shown in the Sumatran race. This is more likely to occur in the female, and this happen to be a female, from the broad wings.

The underside pattern also supports this ID. Both the postdiscal lines or bands are fairly straight, a hallmark of this species. They are not curved in an arc like most of the other species.

TL Seow

[MrGee]

Thank you Seow. Not quite so exciting as one of Les's suggestions but they cannot all be rare!

[MrGee]

Oh, I forgot to say thank you also for the link to the Rapala resource - very useful!

[Painted Jezebel]

I did not consider R. nissa for several reasons. Firstly, the upperside was not steely blue, and secondly, C&P4 states that it is a purely montane species. The underside is also supposed to be purple washed, this one does not appear so. Finally, the orange discal patch seems larger, expanding into space 2, than in the photos of the species I have seen.

This is a tricky one, to me!

[MrGee]

So, will I need to leave this one as an unidentified Rapala?

[Psyche]

The butterfly is R. nissa.

There are only two species with the postdiscal lines/bands fairly straight on both wings. They are nissa & cowani. R. cowani have more irregular hindwing band.

Two other orangey species R. hades & rhodopis can be ruled out because the forewing band is curved and the hindwing band is ragged.

Here is an example from Yunnan.http://www.gorodinski.ru/view_lycaen..._lycaenidae=54
The race from Taiwan is similar on the underside.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fanedison/4586272479/

TL Seow

[MrGee]

Sorry for not responding sooner. I was hoping Les, who still disagrees, for the reasons he previously stated, would post and you could discuss it further, but he has been very busy on other things.

It has crossed my mind that the angle of the shot, with the wings slightly open, could be making the lines/bands appear to be straighter than they actually are.

[Psyche]

Sorry for not responding sooner. I was hoping Les, who still disagrees, for the reasons he previously stated, would post and you could discuss it further, but he has been very busy on other things.

It has crossed my mind that the angle of the shot, with the wings slightly open, could be making the lines/bands appear to be straighter than they actually are.

You can compare the underside with other examples of R. nissa on the net eg India. Also check other Rapala species that might possibly have an orange patch on the forewing in your area.

If I have not seen the Yunnan male and the Sumatran subspecies of R. nissa, I would have been unable to come to a conclusion.
By a process of elimination there is no other possibilty to me.

Still, the final conclusion is yours to make.
It might be possible to forward your pic. to the Japanese lepidoptera societies for help. They should be delighted with a such request.

TL Seow
PS I thought I'll point out a few facts.

The only 2 species here in SE Asia, in which the females have an orange patch on the forewing are R. cowani & nissa.
Subspecies pahanga of R. nissa is montane but further north the species is not.
The lines are too straight even if the wings are slightly open. C&P4 (BMP)'s key specifically state the forewing band of nissa is unsually straight.