♂, Lampang, Thailand.		♀, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
♂, Lampang, Thailand.		♀, Chiang Rai, Thailand.
♂, Nan, Thailand.		♂, Nan, Thailand.
♂ genitalia, Lampang, Thailand.		Calinaga brahma brahma ♂ genitalia, Kachin, Myanmar.

♂, Bolikhamxai, Laos. (photo by H.Onodera)		♀, Bolikhamxai, Laos. (photo by H.Onodera)

ON : Calinaga sudassana Melville, 1893 OD : Trans. ent. Soc. Lond. 41(2):121-122, pl.7, figs.1,2. TL : "Mountainous regions about 100 miles N.W. of Chieng Mai, Siam" [Chiang Mai, Thailand]. Distribution : Myanmar, N.Thailand, N.Laos. ● ssp.sudassana ● ssp.bedoci ● transition area of sudassana and bedoci ● ssp.distans

[ THAILAND ]
Calinaga buddha sudassana ; Godfrey,1916 : 132. (N)
Calinaga sudassana ; Godfrey,1930 : 298. (N: by Bingham & Fruhstorfer)
Calinaga buddha sudassana ; Pinratana,1979 : 92, figs.N159a.♂,♂(Un). (Chiang Mai)
Calinaga buddha sudassana ; Pinratana & Eliot,1996 : 103, pl.82, figs.199,♂,♂(Un). (Chiang Mai)
Calinaga buddha sudassana ; Ek-Amnuay,[2007] : 496, pl.223, figs.N212,♂,♂(Un),♀,♀. (Wiang Pa Pao)
Calinaga buddha sudassana ; Ek-Amnuay,2012 : 374, pl.160, figs.N202,♂,♂(Un),♀,♀. (Wiang Pa Pao)
Calinaga buddha sudassana ; S.Sophonviwatkul, C.Sunthornwiphat & T.Laola,2015- : Butterflies of Thailand, figs. (Chiang Mai; Lampang)
Calinaga buddha sudassana ; Kimura et al.,2016 : 138, figs.♂,♂(Un),♂,♂(Un). (Chiang Dao)
Calinaga sudassana sudassana ; Tshikolovets,2020 : 51-52, pl.IX, figs.7,♂,8,♂(Un); pl.X. figs.1(ST,♂),2(ST,♂Un),3.♂,4♂(Un),5,♂,6,♂(Un),7,♀,8,♀(Un). (Thailand: Lampang; 100miles N.W. of Chiang Mai; Chiang Rai)

[ LAOS ]
Calinaga buddha avalokita ; Motono & Negishi,1989 : 63, pl.79, figs.7,8. (Vang Vieng)
Calinaga sudassana sudassana ; Onodera,2022 : 52, pl.154, figs.♂,♂(Un) [as Calinaga sudassana distans]. (Xiengkhouang: Muang Kham)

[ THAILAND ]
Chiang Rai : 2♂ 2♀ (incl. photo), (1♂ genitalia dissected).

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Chiang Mai : 11♂ 1♀ (incl. photo).

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Lampang : 20♂ (incl. photo), (1♂ genitalia dissected).

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Nan : 10♂ (incl. photo), (2♂ genitalia dissected).

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

[ LAOS ]
Oudomxai : 1♂ (photo by H.Onodera).

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Xieng Khouang : 2♂ (photo by H.Onodera).

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

The butterfly is locally common in montane forests at moderate to high elevations (Alt. 550 - 1800m) and is very good mimic to Parantica melaneus and Parantica sita (Danainae) in flight. Males frequently come to the banks of streams and puddles to suck water and are occasionally territorial on trees at hilltops.
The specimens from Bolikhamxai, E.Laos have similar markings to sudassana, however, the markings on the UnH and the shape of the hindwing are different. It seems transition area between sudassana and bedoci.
Tshikolovets (2020: 47) treated the taxa brahma, sudassana, bedoci as "superspecies brahma" and these taxa as separate species. Subsequently, Todisco et al. (2024) treated these taxa as subspecies of brahma based on molecular analysis. Their analysis, including the genital findings of brahma and sudassana, which I have examined, is convincing and I have followed it here. The genus Calinaga is extremely difficult to identify by morphological characteristics and requires a comprehensive verification, including examination of genitalia and further DNA analysis.

Melville, M.A.,1893 : Description of a new butterfly of the genus Calinaga from Siam.
Trans. ent. Soc. Lond. 41(2):121-122, pl.7.

Tshikolovets, V.,2020 : The Genus Calinaga Moore, [1858] (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae, Calinaginae).
Tshikolovets Publications. 159 pp, 56 pls.

Todisco, V., Basu, D.N., Prosser, S.W.J., Russell, S., Mutanen, M., Zilli, A., Huertas, B., Kunte, K. & Vane-Wright, R.,2024 :
DNA barcodes from over-a-century-old type specimens shed light on the taxonomy of a group of rare butterflies (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Calinaginae).
PLoS ONE 19(7): e0305825. "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0305825"

♂, Chiang Mai, Thailand.	♂, Lampang, Thailand.
♂+P.agestor, G.xenocles, G.chironides, Lampang, Thailand.	♂, Lampang, Thailand.
♂, Lampang, Thailand.	♂, Lampang, Thailand.
♂, Nan, Thailand.	♂ with Graphium xenocles, Nan, Thailand.
♂ with Papilio agestor, Chiang Mai, Thailand.	♂ with Papilio agestor, Lampang, Thailand.
♂ with Parantica melaneus (model), Chiang Mai, Thailand.

2020.01.31 - 2024.10.31.