Neptis hylas

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Common Sailer
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Lepidoptera Family: Nymphalidae Subfamily: Limenitidinae Genus: Neptis Species: N. hylas
Binomial name
Neptis hylas Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms
Neptis varmona, Moore, 1872 Neptis eurynome (Westwood, 1842)

The Common Sailer Neptis hylas is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in South Asia and Southeast Asia. It has a characteristic stiff gliding flight achieved by short and shallow wingbeats just above the horizontal.

Contents 1 Description 2 Distribution 3 Life history 3.1 Larva 3.2 Pupa 4 Gallery 5 References

[edit] Description

Dry-season form - Upperside black, with pure white markings. Fore wing discoidal streak clavate, apically truncate, subapically either notched or sometimes indistinctly divided; triangular spot beyond broad, well-defined, acute at apex, but not elongate ; discal series of spots separate, not connate, each about twice as long as broad; postdiscal transverse series of small spots incomplete, but some are always present. Hind wing: subbasal band of even or nearly oven width ; discal and subterminal pale lines obscure; postdiscal series of spots well separated, quadrate or subquadrate, very seldom narrow. Underside from pale golden ochraceous to dark ochraceous almost chocolate ; white markings as on the upperside, but broader and defined in black. Fore wing: interspaces 1 a and 1 from base to near the apex shaded with black, some narrow transverse white markings on either side of the transverse postdiscal series of small spots. Hind wing a streak of white on costal margin at base, a more slender white streak below it; the discal and subterminal pale lines of the upperside replaced by narrow white lines with still narrower margins of black. Antennae, head, thorax and abdomen black; the palpi, thorax and abdomen beneath dusky white.

Wet-season form - Differs only in the narrowness of the white markings and in the slightly darker ground-colour and broader black margins to the spots and bands on the underside.^[1]

This species has been observed to make sounds whose function has not been established. ^[2]

[edit] Distribution

Throughout continental India; Sri Lanka; Assam ; Myanmar ; Tenasserim, extending to China and Indomalaya.

[edit] Life history

[edit] Larva

Race varmona = eurynome. Frederic Moore describes this from a drawing by Mr. S. N. Ward (Samuel Neville Ward) as follows :

"Head larger than anterior segment, vertex with two short pointed spines, cheeks obtusely spined; third, fourth, sixth and twelfth segments armed with a subdorsal pair of stout fleshy spiny processes, those on the fourth segment longest. Colour pale green ; face, tip of processes and segments slightly washed with pale pinkish, a slight pinkish oblique lateral fascia from anal process ; a small, dark, lateral spot on sixth segment."^[1]

[edit] Pupa

"Rather short; head-piece bluntly cleft in front, vertex pointed ; thorax dorsally prominent and angular ; dorsum angular at base ; abdominal segments slightly angled dorsally; wing-cases somewhat dilated laterally. Colour pale brownish ochreous, with lateral thoracic golden spots." ^[1]

[edit] Gallery

Neptis hylas varmona at Jayanti in Buxa Tiger Reserve in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal, India.	in Kullu District of Himachal Pradesh, India.	in Kullu District of Himachal Pradesh, India.	in Kullu District of Himachal Pradesh, India.
Museum specimen from Malaya

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Bingham, C. T. 1905. Fauna of British India. Butterflies. Volume 1
2. ^ Scott, F. W. 1968 Sound produced by Neptis hylas (Nymphalidae). Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 22(4):254 PDF