Butterflies of
Thailand, Malaysia &
Borneo
Royal Assyrian
Terinos terpander
HEWITSON, 1862
Family - NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
HELICONIINAE
Tribe - VAGRANTINI
introduction
|
habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
|
 |
|
Terinos terpander robertsia,
Gopeng, West Malaysia |
Introduction
There are 8 species in the genus Terinos,
most of which are restricted to particular parts of the Oriental
or Australian regions, although terpander,
clarissa and
atlita are all quite widespread.
Both sexes of
terpander are
rich purple above with 2 large whitish lunules near the termen
on the hindwing. They can easily be distinguished from the other
Malaysian species atlita and
clarissa, as both of these have the
termen extended into a short stubby tail.
Terinos terpander is found in
Myanmar, Thailand, West Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra, Sarawak,
Brunei, Sabah, Kalimantan and Java.
Habitats
In Malaysia this species inhabits rainforest at elevations
between sea level and about 600 metres. It tends to be found in
open areas such as along roadsides, boardwalks and wider forest
trails.
Lifecycle
The egg is barrel-shaped, pearly-white in colour, and has about
20 vertical ribs, each connected by a series of tiny ridges. It
is laid singly on the underside of leaves of the foodplant.
The larva when fully grown is a dirty pale green colour,
with a series of dark green, cream, and greyish stripes running
from the orange head to the anal segment. There is a
double row of long unbranched shiny black spines along the back,
and a row of shorter spines above the spiracles. It has been
bred in captivity on Rinorea anguifera
( Violaceae ), but in the wild has been found in Sumatra on
Antidesma ( Euphorbiaceae ).
The pretty
chrysalis is pale green, with a dark pink line running along the
edge of the wing cases either side of the thorax. It has a
double row of pink curved spikes along the back, those on the
2nd abdominal segment having chrome silver bases, and those on
the 3rd abdominal segment being particularly long, with hooked
tips rather like antlers.
Adult behaviour
The adults are active mainly in the mornings, either in overcast
or bright sunny conditions. They tend to sit still for long
periods later in the day, but can sometimes be disturbed from
rest.
Males tend to
flit from leaf to leaf, basking here and there for a moment or
two before moving on.
They can also occasionally be seen on the ground imbibing
moisture, and at these times tend to flit constantly from spot
to spot, while slowly fanning their wings.
|
