Graphium phidias

[daveuk]

Male Upperside & underside with data. My only specimen of this species

[Paul K]

I suppose these are collected by Adam.
This location is on my list but apparently Laos is not as safe as it was few years ago and to be in remote areas like this one need few locals as guards and best with the gun.

[adamcotton]

I removed '(Paranticopsis)' from the subject line. Graphium phidias does not belong to the Paranticopsis group (part of subgenus Pathysa), it is actually the basal species of the G. eurypylus group, nominally in subgenus Graphium. There are clues in the wing pattern, such as the paired submarginal forewing spots.

It has usually been mistakenly placed in Paranticopsis because it is a Danaine mimic, but genitalia and DNA analysis confirm its true position.

This specimen must have come from me. Checking my records I caught 16 males at that locality on 16 Feb 2006.

Here's a photo of the place from 9 March 2005:

[adamcotton]

Here's a live male photographed the day before at the same locality:

[adamcotton]

This location is on my list but apparently Laos is not as safe as it was few years ago and to be in remote areas like this one need few locals as guards and best with the gun.

Actually this locality was never very safe. It is the main smuggling route across the border from Vietnam into Laos, and although I never actually had any real problems there were some scary people coming through every so often. I also saw a rusty unexploded Vietnam war mortar shell there one day. Someone had put it on a boulder!
This is a rather difficult place to collect due to the weather, it can be very hit-and-miss, maybe half the time it was rather difficult due to high winds, even if not wet.

Adam.

[adamcotton]

I forgot to mention that Graphium phidias is very local in occurrence, both in Laos and Vietnam, and is a highly seasonal univoltine species. For instance in Lak Sao it only occurs near the border, in mid to late February. I never found it at other places not so far away, nor did I see it anywhere else in central or eastern Laos. The only other place it is known from in Laos is Phou Phan, Sam Neua, in the northeast. Interestingly it has also been found in one place in southern Guizhou, China, much further north than expected.

Adam.

[daveuk]

I removed '(Paranticopsis)' from the subject line. Graphium phidias does not belong to the Paranticopsis group (part of subgenus Pathysa), it is actually the basal species of the G. eurypylus group, nominally in subgenus Graphium. There are clues in the wing pattern, such as the paired submarginal forewing spots.

It has usually been mistakenly placed in Paranticopsis because it is a Danaine mimic, but genitalia and DNA analysis confirm its true position.

This specimen must have come from me. Checking my records I caught 16 males at that locality on 16 Feb 2006.

That's really very interesting Adam. Thanks for all the information.Good to know that it was you who personally collected my specimen. I do have a few more specimens in my collection with your personal data on them. Braver man than me visiting such a place. Very rewarding though to see thrse habitats & the butterflies in them