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Eupterote asclepiades Felder comb. n.
Sphingognatha asclepiades Felder, 1874, in Felder & Rogenhofer. Reise
oest.
Fregatte Novara (Zool.) 2 (Abt. 2): pl 94: 1.
Tagora pallida Walker sensu: Strand, 1924, Gross-Schmett. Erde 10: 424;
Holloway, 1976: 54; Barlow, 1982: 47.
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Eupterote asclepiades
(.61
natural size)
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Diagnosis. Females in the group have a nacreous spot on the forewing disc. The
male genitalia have the interior process of the valve narrow, somewhat
triangular, apically serrate (see Eupterote
muluana sp. n.).
Taxonomic notes. This species, the next and udiana Moore comb. n.
form a group within the genus. The genitalia are rather elongate, the apical
process of the valve broad, straight, produced, and the interior angle
developed. E. udiana from Java is more uniform in facies than the sympatric
asclepiades, has a small, more weakly scobinate aedeagus vesica and a rather
short, obtuse, convolute interior process to the valve (Fig. 83). A related
taxon (slide 69) flies in Sumatra. Bornean specimens of asclepiades are
generally much larger than those from Sumatra and Java.
It has not been possible to locate the two female syntypes of pallida Walker
(Silhet,
Sumatra) but the description refers to grey bands and a double window on the
forewing disc, features more in keeping with Himalayan patula Walker females
than with asclepiades. Therefore it seems advisable to fix this name on the
Silhet locality.
Geographical range. Sundaland.
Habitat preference. The species is frequent in lowland rainforest, favouring
hill dipterocarp forest, and during the Mulu survey it was taken most commonly
in wet heath forest (kerangas).
Biology. Horsfield & Moore (1858-9) illustrated the larva of udiana as
completely blackish brown, cylindrical, with dense secondary setae three times
as long as the body diameter. The head is black with a central white stripe that
broadens ventrally over the frons to enclose a black triangle at its apex flanked
by a pair of smaller black marks. Barlow (1982) stated early instars have long
white setae (asclepiades).
The host-plant given by Horsfield & Moore was Butea (Leguminosae), but
Barlow (1982) indicated asclepiades was polyphagous. It has been reared from
unspecified Zingiberaceae (gingers) by H.F.O'B. Traill.
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