Bali Island Elymnias Hypermnestra Baliensis Common Palm Fly male Satyrinaé (36751123234)

Description:

Elymnias hypermnestra occurs in India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Laos, South Vietnam, Thailand, West Malaysia, Palawan, the Philippines, Taiwan, Sumatra, Borneo, Java and Bali. On the upperside the male is bluish black, with a series of large purplish or bluish spots around the apex and wing margins. It is considered to be a Batesian mimic of the Striped Blue Crow Euploea mulciber - a Danaine which has been demonstrated to be unpalateable to birds. The female is slightly larger, and in the Malaysian subspecies agina is similar to the male. Females of the subspecies tinctoria from Thailand however have a large orange patch on each wing, and are probably mimics of another unpalateable Danaine, the Plain Tiger Danaus chrysippus. The female of the Indian / Sri Lankan race undularis is similar to tinctoria but has dark veins, and is regarded as a mimic of yet another toxic species Danaus genutia. On the underside both sexes of all of the subspecies are brown, finely marbled with reddish, and with a smudge of whitish scales near the apex of the forewing. On the hindwing there is usually a white spot just beyond the discal cell, but this varies in size from one individual to another, and in some examples is entirely absent.