Another UFO Arhopala

[horace2264]

Dr Seow, please help to suggest an ID for this tailed Arhopala. :)

[atronox]

Looks like sublustris...

[Psyche]

The cleander group of Arhopala still need some fine tuning to be done.
Here we have one with the forewing band dislocated at vein 4, & spot 6 bridging spot 5 & cellend bar, suggesting A. athada.

A number of points to note.

Size is still important as the alea subgroup (including sublustris) members are smaller than A. major & about half the size of A. athada.
They would draw attention to their small size.
(Correction: This premise is wrong, & is based on plate 67 in C&P4. in which the images are not proportinate in size. Probably athada is half a size more the alea members.)

However, this one have a number of features which rules out athada.
1. The postdiscal band & submarginal band comes close in space 3 & 4 on the hindwing.
Even better, on the forewing in space 2, they are almost touching.
2. The V spot in space 1b (to the inside or basad of the metallic patch) have flared ends & is broad.

Spot 6 on the hindwing is the usual, wider above , narrower below.
Spot 9 on the forewing is not shifted in.

Two possibilities A. sublustris or milleri.
Since spot 9 is not shifted in, it is possibly A. milleri. (Spot 6 is also not quite the usual shape.)

A. milleri's upperside is more matt ( less shiny ) indigo blue.

TL Seow:cheers:

[horace2264]

Thanks, Aaron and Dr Seow for the species ID. :)
I did not get the chance to see the upperside. Its size is not exactly small, more than the size of an Arhopala major.
Oh well, hope that some of us will get to see more of this species, and that a voucher specimen could be collected soon to fully establish the existence of A. milleri.

[Psyche]

I did not get the chance to see the upperside. Its size is not exactly small, more than the size of an Arhopala major.


I erred in this one. Those black & white images in C&P4 are not proportionate in size, which meant they were individually taken and assembled.
eg. athada & silhetensis have FL of 28 & 30mm. respectively which is way too much. (I measured them.)

As can be seen by comparing Plate 40 & 51, both sublustris & milleri are close to the size of major with milleri the larger.

A. athada (Plate 42/5-6) is the smallest of the cleander subgroup, note the scale in the plate is 9/10 size.
A. athada is at most half a size more than these two.

TL Seow:cheers:

[horace2264]

Dr Seow, after re-reading my earlier post saying "more than the size of an Arhopala major", I realised that I made a silly mistake - the kind that the fingers got into an auto-typing mode (after the word "more") and failed to follow the instruction given by the brain.

What I meant to say was "more likely the size of an Arhopala major". :embrass:

[Psyche]

Oh well, hope that some of us will get to see more of this species, and that a voucher specimen could be collected soon to fully establish the existence of A. milleri.

I think the chance of it being A. milleri is quite high.
If you compare C&P4's Plate 67/10 - sublustris, & 67/11- milleri with this, the plus points for this being A. milleri are:

1. The forewing postdiscal band is broader.
2. The uppermost spot 9 is not shifted in.
3. Spot 6 on the hindwing is fatter.
4. The ground colour is darker.

TL Seow:cheers:

[horace2264]

I think the chance of it being A. milleri is quite high.

Thanks, Dr Seow for highlighting the key features for A. milleri found in this specimen. :) I also took a look at the plate for A. milleri in Pisuth's book and I can see the close match too.
Hopefully I can encounter this species again and do more follow-up work to leave no doubt about its existence.