Tajuria melastigma

Last updated

Branded royal
Tajuria melastigma.jpg
From north India
MelastigmaMFUpUn 517 518 AC1.jpg
From the Courvoisier Collection, Basel, Switzerland
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Lycaenidae
Genus: Tajuria
Species:
T. melastigma
Binomial name
Tajuria melastigma
Synonyms

Ops melastigma(de Nicéville, 1887)

Tajuria melastigma, the branded royal, [2] [3] is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in the Indomalayan realm (in India, Assam, Burma, Thailand). [4] [5] [2] [3] [6]

Contents

Description

Male. Upperside cerulean-blue, of a very bright and beautiful shade of colour. Forewing with a large quadrate shining sexual mark at the end of the cell, limited hindwards by vein 2, and upwards by vein 6, a black costal band, its lower edge running slightly into the cell, and heavily round the cell end, then upwards over the sexual mark and round it down to vein 2, then in a much narrower form to the hinder angle, the sexual patch in some lights has a coppery tint. Hindwing with the costal space and abdominal fold grey, a narrow black band on the outer margin which slightly thickens round the apex of the wing; anal lobe and inner tail greyish-red, outer tail black, both tipped with white. Underside dull, pale, pinkish-grey, markings darker, fine and somewhat indistinct. Forewing with a nearly straight discal line of disconnected, linear marks, one in each interspace, from above vein 6 to the sub-median nervure, the series rather closer to the outer margin than is usual. Hindwing with a similar but somewhat irregular outwardly curved series, very sinuous below its middle and bent inwards in a W-shape to the abdominal margin, both wings with indications of a sub-marginal series; anal lobe with a dull red spot, crowned with pale orange, a smaller very indistinct spot in the first median interspace, with some white scales in the interspace between them, a terminal dark line. Cilia of both wings blackish-brown. Antennae black, ringed with white, club with a red tip; frons red; head and body above and below concolorous with the wings. Female. Upperside of a duller shade of blue than in the male. Forewing with the black borders broader, and, in consequence of the absence of the sex mark, more even. Hindwing with the costal and outer marginal bands rather broad and of a dull blackish-brown. Underside as in the male.

—  Charles Swinhoe, Lepidoptera Indica. Vol. IX [6]

Related Research Articles

<i>Telicota colon</i> Species of butterfly

Telicota colon, commonly known as the pale palm dart or common palm dart, is a butterfly belonging to the family Hesperiidae found in India to Australia.

<i>Chilades parrhasius</i> Species of butterfly

Chilades parrhasius, the small Cupid, is a small butterfly that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family. It is found in Nepal, southern Turan, southern Ghissar, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, United Arab Emirates, Oman and southern, central and north-west India.

<i>Ionolyce helicon</i> Species of insect

Ionolyce helicon, the pointed lineblue, or bronze lineblue, is a small butterfly found in the Indomalayan realm that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family.

<i>Amblypodia anita</i> Species of butterfly

Amblypodia anita, the purple leaf blue or leaf blue, is a lycaenid or blue butterfly found in South Asia and Southeast Asia, including Sri Lanka, India, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Java. The species was first described by William Chapman Hewitson in 1862.

<i>Arhopala abseus</i> Species of butterfly

Arhopala abseus, the aberrant oakblue or aberrant bushblue, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in Asia.

<i>Arhopala centaurus</i> Species of butterfly

Arhopala centaurus, the centaur oakblue or dull oakblue, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in India and southeast Asia to the Philippines.

<i>Zinaspa todara</i> Species of butterfly

Zinaspa todara, the silver streaked acacia blue, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in South Asia.

<i>Cigaritis abnormis</i> Species of butterfly

Cigaritis abnormis, the abnormal silverline, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in south India and Pakistan.

<i>Zesius chrysomallus</i> Species of butterfly

Zesius chrysomallus, the redspot, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in Sri Lanka and India.

<i>Pratapa deva</i> Species of butterfly

Pratapa deva, the white royal, is a lycaenid or blue butterfly found in the Indomalayan realm. The species was first described by Frederic Moore in 1857.

<i>Tajuria jehana</i> Species of butterfly

Tajuria jehana, the plains blue royal, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in Asia.

<i>Tajuria cippus</i> Species of butterfly

Tajuria cippus, the peacock royal, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in the Indomalayan realm.

<i>Horaga onyx</i> Species of butterfly

Horaga onyx, the common onyx, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in Asia.

<i>Hypolycaena nilgirica</i> Species of butterfly

Hypolycaena nilgirica, the Nilgiri tit, is an uncommon species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in Asia, especially in the lowland regions to mid-hills of India and Sri Lanka.

<i>Deudorix perse</i> Species of butterfly

Deudorix perse, the large guava blue, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in the Indomalayan realm. It was described by William Chapman Hewitson in 1863. The larva feeds on Randia dumetorum.

<i>Rapala lankana</i> Species of butterfly

Rapala lankana, the Malabar flash, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in South India and Sri Lanka. It was first described by Frederic Moore in 1879.

<i>Thoressa honorei</i> Species of butterfly

Thoressa honorei, commonly known as the Madras ace, is a skipper butterfly belonging to the family Hesperiidae found in south India.

<i>Zeltus</i> Monotypic butterfly genus in family Lycaenidae

Zeltus is a butterfly genus in the family Lycaenidae, the blues. It is monotypic containing the species Zeltus amasa, the fluffy tit, a small butterfly found in Indomalayan realm. The butterfly is found in India, specially the Western Ghats, Sikkim to Assam. It can also be found in Myanmar, Thailand, West Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Java and the Philippines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Broadtail royal</span> Monotypic butterfly genus in family Lycaenidae

The broadtail royal is a butterfly in the monotypic genus Creon, in the family Lycaenidae. It is found in South Asia.

<i>Cigaritis ictis</i> Species of butterfly

The Common shot silverline, Cigaritis ictis, is a species of lycaenid butterflies. It is native to India and Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan population is classified as a subspecies: Cigaritis ictis ceylonica(Felder, 1868).

References

  1. ↑ de Nicéville, 1887 Descriptions of some new or little-known Butterflies from India, with some Notes on the seasonal Dimorphism obtaining in the Genus MelanitisProc. zool. Soc. Lond. 1887 (3) : 448-467, pl. 39-40
  2. 1 2 R.K., Varshney; Smetacek, Peter (2015). A Synoptic Catalogue of the Butterflies of India. New Delhi: Butterfly Research Centre, Bhimtal & Indinov Publishing, New Delhi. p. 115. doi:10.13140/RG.2.1.3966.2164. ISBN   978-81-929826-4-9.
  3. 1 2 "Tajuria Moore, [1881]" at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms
  4. ↑ Seitz, A., 1912-1927. Die Indo-Australien Tagfalter Grossschmetterlinge Erde 9
  5. ↑ de Nicéville, L., 1890. The butterflies of India, Burmah & Ceylon. 3. Calcutta, xi + 503 pp. Text, Pls.
  6. 1 2 PD-icon.svg One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain : Swinhoe, Charles (1911–1912). Lepidoptera Indica. Vol. IX. Vol. 9. London: Lovell Reeve and Co. pp. 135–136.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.