Butterflies of Sabah (May 2023)

[Peacock Royal]

After attending a wedding dinner in Sabah, I went to explore some places. First time shooting butterflies with a Nikkor 28-300 mm lens on a second-hand D500 body, I guess my camera ISO settings was set inappropriately, resulting in many noisy shots, especially obvious when I crop the pictures.

The two days that I was free to shoot was on 30 and 31 May. But these two days were their Public Holidays (Harvest Day) so the places that I went were crowded with people.

1. Cirrochroa arissa (Banded Yeoman)
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52966192109_f856934fcb_z.jpg

2. Not very sure
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52966371613_d9affd059f_z.jpg

3.Cyrestis nivea (Straight-line Mapwing)
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52965909226_33d2129a7a_z.jpg

4a. Cyrestis maenalis(Dark Mapwing)
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52965312372_5cfbb79463_z.jpg

4b
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52966552705_fe71cce791_z.jpg

I guess these two are Udara species - please help to id them

5. Udara sp
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52965312342_e89f51dca0_z.jpg

6. Udara sp
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52966053534_2f78ca90be_z.jpg

7. Which Miletus ?
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52966371678_014fcd3653_z.jpg

[Psyche]

1. Cirrochroa orissa.


2. Female, probably Tanaecia pelea. Correction More likely T. munda female.

The Tanaecia species in Borneo is very complex with much misidentification.
All the pelea group have similar FW markings with extra white spots inner to the arrowheads.
On the continent only T aruna have this feature.
Many forms, some raised to full species.
T. pelea, munda, palguna, aruna, orphne. Also included are T. valmikis & lutala (usually treated as ssp of pelea).

Possible misidentification. Correction : Probably correct as T. orphne. T. aruna is light brown ,.while T. orphne is dark.
C&P4 state for T. orphne,FW spots 2 & 3 ovate, not with concave outer margins as in T. aruna.
These museum specimens have FW spots 2 & 3 with the outer margins concave as in T. aruna
https://www.gbif.org/species/1908891
Addendum.
This one have the typical descrbed T. orphne marks, ie FW spots 2 & 3 ovate.
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/727596948

Specimens in Seitz, some misIded.
lutala is T. pelea lutala.
consanguis is T. palguna.
apsarasa is T. aruna apsarasa.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Seitz9FaunaIndoAustralicaPlate133.JPG

T. pelea have forms in which the FW spots 2 & 3 are quadrate or squarish in shape.
https://www.zobodat.at/pdf/NEVA_28_0015-0018.pdf


Ps. This below looks to be the female T. pelea lutala. Note the long needle sharp palpi. Danum Valley.
https://lepiforum.org/wiki/page/Tanaecia_iapis#/image/1/1

PS2. Image 2 seem more likely to be T. munda female.
1. The HW arrowheads are set nearer the termen (outer margin)
In T pelea, the HW arrowheads are set nearer the inner margin of the marginal zone.
2. T. munda is stated to more often have the HW strongly whitened.

PS3. Male Tanaecia pelea lutala ,Sarawak for comparison. Note long palpi 3rd segment.
https://insecta.pro/gallery/73485

[Psyche]

5. Udara dilecta.
Wings with submarginal spots.
HW postdiscal spot 7 not darker than the rest of the postdiscal spots below it.
All spots small.
http://www.jamiun.com/udara-dilecta/

[Psyche]

6. Very likely Celastrina algernoni.
Submarginal spots well-developed & continuous.
HW spot 7 black ,darker than the other postdiscal spots.
HW marginal spots 2, 3, & 6 larger than the rest.
http://www17.plala.or.jp/jamides/LycPhil/Lycaenopsis-Phil/Celastrina.html

See also Otsuka's Borneo Lycaenids L97.

[Psyche]

7. Female Miletus symethus.
Several species are very similar on the undersides eg, .M gaesa, boisduvali, biggsii.
M. symethus is IDed by.
FW apex lighter, similarly HW apex is broadly lighter.
HW postdiscal spots with inner margins dark shaded.
HW mid-termen brown shaded.
https://thaibutterflies.com/Butterflies/miletus-symethus/



TL Seow; Cheers.