| Dark evening brown | |
|---|---|
 | |
| M. p. bethami wet-season form Kerala, India | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Nymphalidae |
| Genus: | Melanitis |
| Species: | M. phedima |
| Binomial name | |
| Melanitis phedima (Cramer, 1780) | |
| Synonyms | |
Melanitis phedima, the dark evening brown, [3] [1] is a species of butterfly found flying at dusk. The flight of this species is erratic. They are found in south and southeast Asia. [3] [1]
Wet-season form: Male. Upperside dusky fuliginous-brown, the outer borders palest; cilia brown. Forewing very slightly angled below the apex; with a well-defined subcostal nearly round ochreous patch before the apex, divided by the brown radial veinlets. Hindwing unmarked. Underside dark purpurescent-brown, densely and uniformly covered with ochreous-cinereous strigae; the outer border ferruginous. Forewing with four ordinary small obscure white-pupilled ocelli. Hindwing with a series of six submarginal prominent ocelli, the upper second minute, the anal geminated, the other four nearly equal and much larger, each pupilled with white. Female. Upperside. Both wings much paler than in the male. Forewing more broadly angled below the apex; with the entire apical area broadly pale ochreous, on which is placed a round black spot with white pupil, situated between the upper and middle median veinlets, also a minute obsolescent ocellus below it and three above it. Hindwing with a small posterior submarginal black spot between the middle aud lower medians, pupilled with white. [2] [4]
Underside. Both wings with the ground colour pale purpurescent ochreous, densely covered with darker brown strigae, the basal area and outer borders of the discal fascia slightly washed with pale purpurescent-cinereous; the ocelli as in the male, but rather larger; the outer margins ochreous. Forewing with an obscure ochreous oblique medial and a waved discal narrow fascia, and the hindwing with a medial excurved similar fascia, the two latter somewhat most defined. [4]
Body beneath, and palpi cinereous-ochreous speckled; legs brown; antennae brown, with a pale ochreous tip. [4]
Dry-season form: Male. Upperside much deeper dusky-brown than in the wet-season form, the colour having a purpurescent tint, and the outer borders are thickly speckled with purpurescent-cinereous scales, Forewing with a more acute and prolonged angle below the apex than in male of the wet-season form; the large apical patch being of a rich ochreous and darkest inwardly, the patch extending from within the end of the cell to the cinereous marginal border; the ocelloid spots being obscurely defined. Hindwing unmarked; the tail much prolonged. Underside very densely purpnrescent-brown or purpurescent olive-brown, the cinerescent strigae very irregular and more or less indistinctly disposed and mottled, the basal area darkest, the outer discal washed with cinereous; the ocelloid spots smaller, very ill-defined. Female. Upperside much paler than in the male, with less distinct cinereous margins. Forewing even more acutely angled below the apex than in male; the rich ochreous apical patch occupying about half the wing, extending more or less well into the cell and to the posterior angle, the enclosed ocelloid spots being present as in the female of the wet-season form, or the two ordinary-disposed subapical black spots are developed, but both well-separated, more or less elongated, and with a distinct white pupil. Eindioing with one, or two, posterior submarginal white dots. [4]
Underside. Both wings dusky ochreous, with uniformly-disposed dark brown strigae, which are sometimes more or less irregularly blotched; the submarginal ocelloid spots also blotched. [4]
Ischaemum semisagittatum and a variety of grasses of the genera Andropogon , Cymbopogon , Pennisetum , Setaria , Oplismenus compositus , and Bambusa arundinacea . [5]
Mycalesis oculus, the red-disc bushbrown, is a satyrine butterfly found in southern India. It is similar in markings to Mycalesis adolphei but distinguished by the reddish band around the large apical spots on the upper forewings.
Melanitis leda, the common evening brown, is a common species of butterfly found flying at dusk. The flight of this species is erratic. They are found in Africa, South Asia and South-east Asia extending to parts of Australia.
Junonia atlites, the grey pansy, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in South Asia.
Ixias pyrene, the yellow orange tip, is a small butterfly of the family Pieridae, that is, the yellows and whites, which is found in Sri Lanka, India and southeast Asia.
Appias lalage, the spot puffin, is a small butterfly of the family Pieridae, that is, the yellows and whites, which is found in India, Indochina and Hainan.
Appias indra, the plain puffin, is a small butterfly of the family Pieridae, that is, the yellows and whites, which is found in south and southeast Asia.
Appias libythea, the striped albatross, is a small butterfly of the family Pieridae, that is, the yellows and whites, which is 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.
Melanitis zitenius, the great evening brown, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in Asia. The species is crepuscular.
Mycalesis subdita, the Tamil bushbrown, is a satyrine butterfly found in south India and Sri Lanka. It is not resolved whether this is a good species or is a subspecies of Mycalesis visala.
Mycalesis nicotia, the brighteye bushbrown, is a species of satyrine butterfly found in Asia.
Lethe rohria, the common treebrown, is a species of satyrine butterfly found in Asia.
Vindula erota, the common cruiser, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in forested areas of tropical South Asia and Southeast Asia.
Cirrochroa thais, also known as the Tamil yeoman, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in forested areas of tropical Sri Lanka and India. It is the state insect of Tamil Nadu, an Indian state.
Neptis nata, the clear sailer or dirty sailer, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in south and southeast Asia.
Hippotion celerio, the vine hawk-moth or silver-striped hawk-moth, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. It was described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Junonia iphita, the chocolate pansy or chocolate soldier, is a butterfly found in Asia.
Abisara bifasciata, the double-banded Judy or twospot plum Judy, is a butterfly in the family Riodinidae. It is found in Asia.
Ypthima striata, the Nilgiri jewel fourring or striated fivering, is a species of Satyrinae butterfly found in south India.
Heteropsis davisoni, the Palni bushbrown, is a species of satyrine butterfly found in southern India. Some authors consider this as a subspecies of Heteropsis mamerta or Mycalesis malsara or Mycalesis lepcha.
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. p. 162. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain : Moore, Frederic (1893–1896). Lepidoptera Indica. Vol. II. London: Lovell Reeve and Co. pp. 127–128.