Sighting of Branded Yeoman Algia fasciata fasciata (Felder & Felder, 1860) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Heliconiinae) in Jaintia and Cachar Hills, northeastern India

Acknowledgements: We thank the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) for supporting the fellowship of the first author, Rufford Small Grants for financially supporting the study and Dr. Krushnamegh Kunte for identifying the species from the first images and Prashanth M.B. for preparing the map. We also thank two anonymous reviewers whose comments helped to improve the manuscript. The nymphalid butterfly Algia fasciata fasciata (Felder & Felder, 1860) has been known to occur from Myanmar (south of Karen Hills), Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Hainan, Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, Nias, Java, Philippines and the Andaman Islands with different geographical races or subspecies (Inayoshi 2012). From both Myanmar and the Andamans, it was reported as ‘not rare’ by Evans (1932) whereas Corbet et al. (1992) reported the species to be very common in the Malay peninsula. The other two species of the genus Algia are A. satyrina (Felder & Felder, 1867) and A. felderi (Kirsch, 1877), the former being reported from Sulawesi and Bangka islands and the latter from Papua New Guinea (http://ftp.funet.fi/index/Tree_of_ life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/ p a p i l i o n o i d ea / ny m p h a l i d a e/ heliconiinae/algia/). In this note, we report the species Algia fasciata fasciata from Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya and the adjacent Barail Hills of Assam (see Fig. 1), based on several individuals recorded consistently over a period of three years between November 2011 and July 2014. This is the only species of the genus Algia reported so far from the Indian subcontinent. A detailed description of the species was provided by Evans (1932). The female of A. fasciata fasciata is slightly darker with broader wings than the male. Male upper fore wings are with a dull ochreous brand on either side of veins 5 and 6. Upperside is dark brown with a pale yellow discal band on the fore and hind wing and two outer rows of conjoined yellow spots; the discal band on upper fore wing ends at vein 4 and there is a yellow spot that spreads across veins 5 and 6. The wingspan of the species is 40–50 mm (Pinratana 2006). The larvae which feeds on Hydnocarpus (Achariaceae) and Eugenia (Myrtaceae) have not been found in India so far. The first known record of this species from the Indian mainland was reported through an image posted for identification on Facebook (on 10 September 2011). The image was shot at Kaliabor, situated in the Nagaon

The nymphalid butterfly Algia fasciata fasciata (Felder & Felder, 1860) has been known to occur from Myanmar (south of Karen Hills), Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Hainan, Malay Peninsula, Borneo, Sumatra, Nias, Java, Philippines and the Andaman Islands with different geographical races or subspecies (Inayoshi 2012). From both Myanmar and the Andamans, it was reported as 'not rare' by Evans (1932) whereas Corbet et al. (1992) reported the species to be very common in the Malay peninsula. The other two species of the genus Algia are A. satyrina (Felder & Felder, 1867) and A. felderi (Kirsch, 1877), the former being reported from Sulawesi and Bangka islands and the latter from Papua New Guinea (http://ftp.funet.fi/index/Tree_of_ life/insecta/lepidoptera/ditrysia/ p a p i l i o n o i d e a / ny m p h a l i d a e / heliconiinae/algia/).
In this note, we report the species Algia fasciata fasciata from Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya and the adjacent Barail Hills of Assam (see Fig. 1), based on several individuals recorded consistently over a period of three years between November 2011 and July 2014. This is the only species of the genus Algia reported so far from the Indian subcontinent.
A detailed description of the species was provided by Evans (1932). The female of A. fasciata fasciata is slightly darker with broader wings than the male. Male upper fore wings are with a dull ochreous brand on either side of veins 5 and 6. Upperside is dark brown with a pale yellow discal band on the fore and hind wing and two outer rows of conjoined yellow spots; the discal band on upper fore wing ends at vein 4 and there is a yellow spot that spreads across veins 5 and 6. The wingspan of the species is 40-50 mm (Pinratana 2006). The larvae which feeds on Hydnocarpus (Achariaceae) and Eugenia (Myrtaceae) have not been found in India so far.
The first known record of this species from the Indian mainland was reported through an image posted for identification on Facebook (on 10 September 2011). The image was shot at Kaliabor, situated in the Nagaon From Jaintia Hills, all the records of this species have been reported from approximately 50-300 m elevation. However, the elevation range of this species was much higher in Barail Hills, with records at 950m.
Both RG and MJG have been involved in multiseasonal monitoring of the species in Jaintia Hills and Barail Hills and both these sites have been intensively monitored between 2011-2013. It has been observed that the flight period of Algia fasciata is between July and December in the Jaintia and Barail Hills. We are yet to record the species during the month of March-April, as was recorded by Mudai in 2011.
From Malayasia, A. f. fasciata has been observed until June. Therefore the restriction of our sightings of A. f. fasciata between July and December might mean that the butterfly is not breeding in the area and that the sighted individuals are vagrants from neighbouring Myanmar. Alternatively, their restricted appearance in Assam and Meghalaya might also be an indicator of the population's univoltine characteristic. According to our sightings, the species is locally common in the Narpuh area of East Jaintia Hills, Meghalaya and Barail Wildlife Sanctuary, Cachar, Assam.
From India, apart from the sites mentioned in Assam and Meghalaya, the species has also been reported from the Buxa Tiger Reserve (BTR), situated in the Duar region, northern part of West Bengal (S. Nandi pers. comm. 2012). Since then, however, the species has District of Assam on 13 April 2011 (Fig. 1) and has been reported in the local print media (http://www. assamtribune.com/scripts/detailsnew.asp?id=nov2711/ at092).
Monsoon Jyoti Gogoi (MJG) might have sighted the species in Numaligarh Reserve situated in the Golaghat District of Assam circa February 2008, but the record remains unconfirmed in the absence of a photographic record. Apart from the above sightings, the species has not been reported from the above two sites or any nearby locations till date. The