The curious case of Junonia hedonia.

Junonia hedonia is a butterfly that was initially thought to exist in south Johor and Singapore, as mentioned in C&P4 1992.

Even before that it seem to have enter the Klang Valley & gradually become the dominant species replacing J. iphita.

In P. Malaysia J. iphita is found in open ,wastelands & scrub around villages.
In the Klang valley J. hedonia becomes common in roadside waste grounds & forest edges.

J. hedonia have now spread across KL to pahang & the east coasts to S. Thailand.
Curiously it does not seem to have spread much north of Selangor.

The two can be confusing in fieldshots, & possibly there is some degree of intermediates.

The important features for ID are.

Junonia iphita.
Dull ochreous brown
1. UpH ocelli smaller ,dull brown & laid on a diffuse dark fascia.(ID certainty.)
2. UnH discal dark fascia with a thin dark-eged pale band lining its inner border.
Ocelli weakly contrasted.
https://yutaka.it-n.jp/nym/760250001.html
https://wingscales.com/media/2400/4181-1-97d7f.jpg
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/2847204413
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/2847204407
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/2847207231


Junonia hedonia ida.
More reddish brown.
1 UpH ocelli large, often orangey on a clear ground. (ID certainty.)
2. UnH dark discal fascia not edged by a pale thin band on its inner border.(some example weak)
3. UnH ocelli better defined ,often orangey.
https://yutaka.it-n.jp/nym/760260010.html
https://blogger.googleusercontent.co...y-HoraceT3.jpg
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/2847207218
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/2847207222
https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/2847207213

Two observations from Perak State IDed as J. hedonia are doubtful. They both have a pale line/band on the inner margin of the UnH dark fascia and are likely to be J. iphita.
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/30345365
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/139728021

There seem no other records from Perak or further north of it in P. Malaysia.


TL Seow;Cheers.