Butterflies of
Thailand, Malaysia &
Borneo
The Uncertain Satyr
Xanthotaenia busiris
WESTWOOD, 1858
Family - NYMPHALIDAE
subfamily -
SATYRINAE
Tribe - ZETHERINI
introduction
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habitats |
lifecycle |
adult behaviour
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Xanthotaenia busiris,
Kuala Woh,
West Malaysia |
Introduction
This large forest-dwelling species was for many years considered
to be a member of the former subfamily Amathusiinae. That
subfamily no longer exists, taxonomists having decided to
relegate it to the level of a tribe of the Morphinae ( now the
Morphini, a tribe of the Satyrinae ). Eliot however was
convinced that the butterfly was neither an Amathusiine or a
Morphiine, pointing out that the larval stages had more in
common with the traditional Satyrinae.
The uncertainties were finally cleared up in 2006, when Penz
et al
published a formal description of the immature stages which
corroborated this view. They also provided evidence that the
caterpillar possesses an 'anal comb' - a structure normally only
found in the Hesperiidae and certain moth families, which is
used to catapult the larval droppings away from the feeding
site.
Research by Peňa & Wahlberg, released in 2008, using molecular
evidence to trace the butterfly's ancestry, implies that that
the genus Xanthotaenia should be
placed in the 'primitive' Satyrine tribe Zetherini, indicating
that it is closely allied to Neorina,
Penthema,
Ethope and Callarge.
Xanthotaenia busiris is the only
member of its genus. It is found in Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia,
Sumatra and Borneo.
Habitats
This species is found in primary rainforest, at elevations
between about 100-300 metres.
Lifecycle
The caterpillar
is smooth, green, and has head horns and a pair of caudal
prongs. The foodplant is rattan palm
Calamus ( Arecaceae ).
Adult behaviour
Both sexes seem
to spend most of their lives skulking at ground level among the
undergrowth, and are usually seen in the vicinity of stands of
ginger ( Zingiberaceae ), often in company with the Amathusiine
Faunis canens.
Xanthotaenia busiris is
semi-crepuscular in behaviour, and is normally only active up
until about mid-morning. It can however sometimes be disturbed
later in the day - its presence being given away as it flies, by
a flash of bright yellow from the bar across the upper
forewings.
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