Poritia erycinoides, the blue gem,[1] is a small butterfly found in India, Myanmar[2] and parts of South-East Asia[3] that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family.
| Poritia erycinoides | |
|---|---|
| |
| Upperside left, underside right, from Seitz | |
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Lycaenidae |
| Genus: | Poritia |
| Species: | P. erycinoides
|
| Binomial name | |
| Poritia erycinoides (C. Felder, 1865)
| |
Range
editIt ranges along the Himalayas from Assam in India to northern Myanmar and south to the Shan States and southern Myanmar.[2][4] As per Savela, the butterfly ranges from Assam, Burma, Malaya, Langkawi, Tioman Islands, Borneo, Java and Thailand.[3]
Status
editNot rare as per William Harry Evans.[2] Rare as per Mark Alexander Wynter-Blyth.[4]
Description
editA small butterfly, 26 to 36 mm in wingspan. The basal half or more of the cell in upper forewing is blue, with blue spots present in the apex and termen. Females: The upper forewing has a yellow discal patch above the blue area. The upper hindwing blue area is small and reduced to discal quadrate spots in 3 and 4. The females resemble those of the common gem (P. hewitsoni) but with yellow spots on the upper hindwing. The males of the blue gem are bluer than the common gem which is greener.[4]
Taxonomy
editFive subspecies of the butterfly have been described:[3]-
- Poritia erycinoides erycinoides C. Felder, 1865 Java[3]
- Poritia erycinoides elsiei Evans, 1925 Assam, northern Myanmar,[2] Burma, northern Thailand[3]
- Poritia erycinoides phraatica Hewitson, 1878 southern Shan States – southern Myanmar,[2] Thailand, Peninsular Malaya, Langkawi, Tioman Islands[3]
- Poritia erycinoides trishna Fruhstorfer, 1919 Assam, ?Nepal, ?Sikkim[3]
- Poritia erycinoides phaluke Druce, 1895 Borneo[3]
Cited references
edit- ^ Beccaloni, G.; Scoble, M.; Kitching, I.; Simonsen, T.; Robinson, G.; Pitkin, B.; Hine, A.; Lyal, C., eds. (2003). "Poritia erycinoides". The Global Lepidoptera Names Index. Natural History Museum. . Retrieved 23 April 2018.
- ^ a b c d e Evans, W.H. (1932). The Identification of Indian Butterflies (2nd ed.). Mumbai, India: Bombay Natural History Society. pp. 208–209, ser no H2.7.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Poritia Moore, [1866]" at Markku Savela's Lepidoptera and some other life forms
- ^ a b c Wynter-Blyth, Mark Alexander (1957). Butterflies of the Indian Region. Bombay, India: Bombay Natural History Society. p. 252. ISBN 978-8170192329.
References
edit- Evans, W.H. (1932). The Identification of Indian Butterflies (2nd ed.). Mumbai, India: Bombay Natural History Society.
- Wynter-Blyth, Mark Alexander (1957). Butterflies of the Indian Region. Bombay, India: Bombay Natural History Society. ISBN 978-8170192329.Online
Online
- Beccaloni, George; Scoble, Malcolm; Kitching, Ian; Simonsen, Thomas; Robinson, Gaden; Pitkin, Brian; Hine, Adrian; Lyal, Chris. "The Global Lepidoptera Names Index (LepIndex)". Natural History Museum, London. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
- "Markku Savela's website on Lepidoptera".
External links
edit
Media related to Poritia erycinoides at Wikimedia Commons