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LEPIDOPTERA

Neptis pryeri Butler, 1871
Neptis pryeri Butler, 1871

•TYPE LOCALITY. «Shanghai» [China].

• RANGE. Amur and Ussuri regions; E. and central China, Korea, Japan.

•DISTRIBUTION AND VARIATION. The nominotypical subspecies (= andetria Fruhstrofer, 1912; = kusnetzovi Kurentzov, 1949) is known to occur over the territo­ries concerned. From some adjacent parts, the subspecies koreana Nakahara (Korea) and arboretorum Oberthur, 1876 (China) have been described.

•TAXONOMIC NOTES. The form andetria Fruhstrofer, 1912, «smaller and conspicu­ous in the submarginal band almost disappearing", has been described from Vladivostok. However, the material examined contains all forms transitional both in size and colouration between the nominotypical one and andetria. N. kusnetzovi Kurentzov, 1949 has been described from two male specimens deriving from the central Sikhote-Alin Mts. Based on some superficial characters, Korshunov & Gorbunov (1995) have synonymised kusnetzovi with pryeri. However, there are quite considerable differences in male genitalic structure of the distal part of the valvae between these two taxa. A final solution of this problem seems only possible after a detailed comparative analysis of sufficient material of both taxa involved.

• HABITATS AND BIOLOGY. Different kinds of mixed forest including montane up to 1,500 m a.s.l. Flight period: July to August. Host plants in Japan (Fukuda et al., 1984): Spiraea spp. Hibernation as instar 3 larvae.

• SIMILAR SPECIES. Neptis philyra, N. philyroides, N. speyeri, N. sappho, N. rivularis: without black spots at base of UNH.

Photo and text: Guide to the BUTTERFLIES OF RUSSIA and adjacent territories Volume 2. PENSOFT, Sofia - Moscow. 2000