Arhopala asia

Arhopala asia Nicéville, 1893


♂, Narathiwat, Thailand.		♂, Yala, Thailand.

♂ genitalia, Narathiwat, Thailand.

ON : Arhopala asia Nicéville, 1893
OD : J. Bombay nat. Hist. Soc. 7(3):333, pl.H, fig.16,♂.
TL : Quang, Malay Peninsula. (NZC)

Distribution : P.Thailand (Yala ; Narathiwat), W.Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo.

Type Material Information

1♂ Type, Quang, Malay Peninsula. (NZC) ; Sheela et al.,2019 : 85, figs.♂,♂(Un).

Records taken from Literature

[ THAILAND ]
Arhopala amphimuta amphimuta ; Ek-Amnuay,[2007] : 612, pl.277, figs.L214b♂,♂(Un),'♀,♀(Un)'. (Yala)
Arhopala amphimuta amphimuta ; Ek-Amnuay,2012 : 646, pl.293, figs.L240b♂,♂(Un),'♀,♀(Un)'. (Yala)
Arhopala amphimuta amphimuta ; Kimura et al.,2014 : 60, figs.♂,♂(Un),♀,♀(Un). (Than To WF.)

Specimens Examined

[ THAILAND ]
Yala : 1♂ (genitalia dissected).

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Narathiwat : 1♂ (genitalia dissected).

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Notes

The butterfly is uncommon in montane forests at low elevations (Alt. 250 - 350m).
In Yala province, Arhopala amphimuta mirelliana and Arhopala amphimuta amphimuta-like individuals are found sympatrically. These amphimuta-like individuals seem to be Arhopala asia which is considered a synonym of ssp.amphimuta. Arhopala asia was described by Nicéville (1893) and was considered a distinct species until Corbet (1941). Subsequently, Evans (1957) synonymised it with Arhopala amphimuta amphimuta, and this treatment has been followed to the present day.
Arhopala asia resembles Arhopala amphimuta amphimuta from W.Malaysia, Sumatra and Borneo, however, it can easily be distinguished by the following characteristics:
1) Male UpH, space 6 is completely blue or has only a small fuscous portion, whereas in Arhopala amphimuta, it is at least half fuscous in space 6. 2) Male genitalia is quite different.
As mentioned above, considering the differences in the male genitalia and the sympatric distribution with Arhopala amphimuta, it is reasonable to regard this as a separate species. Further taxonomic study is needed.

Literature

Nicéville, L. de,1893 : On new and little-known Butterflies from the Indo-Malayan Region.
J. Bombay nat. Hist. Soc. 7(3): 322-357, pls.H,I,J.

Corbet, A.S.,1941 : A key to the Indo-Malayan species of Arhopala Boisduval (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae).
Proc. R. ent. Soc. Lond. (B)10(9): 149-183, figs.1-114.

Evans, W.H.,1957 : A Revision of the Arhopala Group of Oriental Lycaenidae (Lepidoptera: Rhopalocera).
Bull. Br. Mus. nat. Hist. (Ent.) 5(3): 85-141.

2025.09.30.