Aglais ladakensis
Encyclopedia
The Ladakh Tortoiseshell (Aglais ladakensis) is a species of nymphalid
Nymphalidae
The Nymphalidae is a family of about 5,000 species of butterflies which are distributed throughout most of the world. These are usually medium sized to large butterflies. Most species have a reduced pair of forelegs and many hold their colourful wings flat when resting. They are also called...

 butterfly found in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

Description

Differs from Aglais kaschmirensis
Aglais kaschmirensis
The Indian Tortoiseshell is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in Asia.-Description:Upperside of forewings with the basal half of costa and termen pale brown, the former flecked with pale yellow, the latter bordered inwardly by a narrow darker brown band bearing a series of black lunules;...

with the forewing termen convex and not falcate and not produced between veins 5 and 6.
Upperside colours and markings similar to and disposed as in Aglais rizana but the lower blackish discal spot or patch in fore wing much broader, extended to the median vein joining the transverse band across the cell, joined also by a triangular patch at base of interspace 3 to the short band beyond the discocellulars; two small rounded spots in interspaces 2 and 3 respectively placed on a yellow band, as in N. rizana. Hind wing with the sub-terminal series of conical black spots larger, each centered with a large spot of blue.

Underside much paler than in either Aglais kaschmirensis
Aglais kaschmirensis
The Indian Tortoiseshell is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in Asia.-Description:Upperside of forewings with the basal half of costa and termen pale brown, the former flecked with pale yellow, the latter bordered inwardly by a narrow darker brown band bearing a series of black lunules;...

not so thickly studded with dark transverse short striae. Fore wing: the cell with an ochraceous subbasal and a whitish median transverse broad band; beyond apex of cell a curved, broad, whitish, irregular, postdiscal band from costa to dorsum, and a short oblique preapical whitish mark.

Hindwing basal two-thirds dusky brown, outwardly margined by a sinuous jet-black line; both fore and hind wings with the transverse series of triangular dark marks of the upperside showing through.

Antennae, head, thorax and abdomen as in Aglais kaschmirensis
Aglais kaschmirensis
The Indian Tortoiseshell is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in Asia.-Description:Upperside of forewings with the basal half of costa and termen pale brown, the former flecked with pale yellow, the latter bordered inwardly by a narrow darker brown band bearing a series of black lunules;...

.

Wing expanse of 46–53 mm.

Distribution

Northern Himalayan ranges, Ladakh, Tibet, Chitral; Nilang Pass beyond Mussoorie; Sikkim, Chumbi valley.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK