| Staff sergeant | |
|---|---|
 | |
| At Tadiandamol in Karnataka, India | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nymphalidae |
| Genus: | Athyma |
| Species: | A. selenophora |
| Binomial name | |
| Athyma selenophora (Kollar, 1844) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Athyma selenophora, the staff sergeant, [1] [2] is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in tropical and subtropical Asia. [1] [2]
The male upperside is black with a forewing that has a discoidal streak deep red, twice divided, with the apical portion dusky white. Three elongate oval white spots appear in the interspaces beyond, forming a distinct white band, variable in width, from dorsum to interspace 3. [3]
The staff sergeant features an obscure inner subterminal line of transverse whitish marks, and another outer subterminal pale line that's even more obscure. The hindwing has a broad white discal band of the forewing continued across to vein 1, a postdiscal narrow diffuse pale macular band, and a subterminal pale line; abdominal fold dusky grey; cilia of both forewings and hindwings black, alternated with white. [3]
The underside is bright chestnut red with the markings as on the upperside but all white, on the terminal portions of the wings diffuse. Discoidal streak in forewing white, diffuse, more broadly divided; interspace 8 white at base, with a dark chestnut-red loop below it in interspace 7 crossing into the cellular area; very dark postdiscal blotches in interspaces 1a, 1 to 3 on forewing; and a series of very dark chestnut-red marks between discal and postdiscal bands on the hindwing; dorsal margin of hindwing broadly blue. Antennae, head, thorax and abdomen very dark brown; beneath, the palpi, thorax and abdomen white faintly tinged with blue. [3]
Female upperside velvety brownish black with white and pale markings, Forewing: the discoidal streak clavate (club like), twice divided, a large elongate triangular spot beyond apex of cell; a macular discal band of four large spots inclined outwards from dorsum, and three obliquely placed spots from beyond the middle of the costa, the lowest spot of these minute, the next two large, elongate, with a very slender short streak above them on the costa; an inner subterminal series of transverse spots and an outer subterminal pale incomplete line. Hindwing; the subbasal broad band widening towards costa; a postdiscal series of large, inwardly bluntly conical spots and a broad subterminal pale line. Underside as in the male, but the white markings broader, the ground colour not so bright. Antennae, thorax and abdomen as in the male but the abdomen with a white transverse band at base. [3] [4]
Wingspan 66–72 mm
Habitat: the Himalayas; southern India, the Nilgiris, the Western Ghats; Assam, Myanmar and northern Tenasserim. [3]
In the dry-season form the ground colour in both sexes is brown, paler in the male than in the female; the discal band variable in width, but on the whole broader both on the upper and under sides, and the ground colour on the underside ochraceous brown. [3]
Larva and pupa: Like that of Athyma inara , Doubleday & Hewitson, but the dorsal patch is much smaller and there are some white spots on the sides. The pupa is distinguished from that of A. inara by slight differences in the shape of the grotesque processes on the head and thorax. The common food plant is the Adina cordifolia (Davidson, Bell and Aitken). [3]
Abisara echerius, the plum Judy, is a small but striking butterfly found in Asia belonging to the Punches and Judies family (Riodinidae). It is difficult to distinguish it from Abisara bifasciata.
Meandrusa sciron, the brown gorgon, is a species of swallowtail butterfly found in parts of South Asia and Southeast Asia. It belongs to the hooked swallowtails genus, Meandrusa, of the family Papilionidae. The brown gorgon is found in India from Sikkim to Assam and north Burma and is not considered to be threatened. Though not uncommon, it is protected under Indian law under the name gyas.
Papilio (Chilasa) epycides, the lesser mime, is a swallowtail butterfly found in India and parts of South-East Asia. The butterfly belongs to the mime (Chilasa) subgenus or the black-bodied swallowtails. It is a mimic of a common Indian Danainae, the glassy tiger butterfly.
Delias pasithoe, the redbase Jezebel is a medium-sized butterfly of the family Pieridae, that is, the yellows and whites. The species is found in parts of South Asia and Southeast Asia. There has been some dispute for which species the specific name aglaja, used twice by Linnaeus in 1758, applies – the redbase Jezebel, or the dark green fritillary, a brush-footed butterfly. Here, Delias pasithoe is used for the redbase Jezebel, based on the replacement name proposed by Linnaeus himself.
Charaxes marmax, the yellow rajah, is a butterfly found in India that belongs to the rajahs and nawabs group, that is, the Charaxinae group of the brush-footed butterflies family.
Tarucus theophrastus, the common tiger blue, pointed Pierrot or African Pierrot, is a small butterfly found in the Old World tropics. It belongs to the lycaenids or blues family.
Azanus jesous, the African babul blue or topaz-spotted blue, is a small butterfly found in Africa, Egypt, Syria, India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family.
Niphanda cymbia, the pointed Pierrot, is a small butterfly found in northern India, Burma and northern Borneo that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family.
Hypolimnas misippus, the Danaid eggfly, mimic, or diadem, is a widespread species of nymphalid butterfly. It is well known for polymorphism and mimicry. Males are blackish with distinctive white spots that are fringed in blue. Females are in multiple forms that include male-like forms while others closely resemble the toxic butterflies Danaus chrysippus and Danaus plexippus.
Neptis soma, the sullied sailer or the creamy sailer, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in south and southeast Asia.
Neptis columella, the short banded sailer, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in South and Southeast Asia.
Symbrenthia lilaea, the peninsular jester, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in South Asia and Southeast Asia. It forms a superspecies with Symbrenthia hippoclus. There are numerous regional forms in a poorly resolved taxonomy.
Athyma nefte, the colour sergeant, is a species of brush-footed butterfly found in tropical South and Southeast Asia.
Athyma zeroca, the small staff sergeant, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in tropical and subtropical Asia.
Cethosia nietneri, the Tamil lacewing, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in Sri Lanka and south India. The species name is after John Nietner who obtained specimens of the butterfly from Ceylon from which it was described.
Vindula erota, the common cruiser, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in forested areas of tropical South Asia and Southeast Asia.
The Indian fritillary is a species of butterfly of the nymphalid or brush-footed family. It is usually found from south and southeast Asia to Australia.
Pantoporia hordonia, the common lascar, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in Cambodia, tropical and subtropical Asia.
Calinaga buddha, the freak, is a species of butterfly in the Calinaginae subfamily that is found in parts of Southeast Asia, China and India.
Auzakia is a monotypic butterfly genus in the family Nymphalidae. It contains the single species, Auzakia danava, the commodore, which is found from Tibet to Sumatra.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain : Bingham, Charles Thomas (1905). Fauna of British India. Butterflies Vol. 1. pp. 310–311. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain : Moore, Frederic (1896–1899). Lepidoptera Indica. Vol. III. Vol. 3. London: Lovell Reeve and Co. pp. 202–205.
Media related to Athyma selenophora at Wikimedia Commons