Confirmation of ID - Paranaa apostata

[DaveChiangMai]

Photographed in Mae Hong Son, extreme nw Thailand. As no forewing cell spots and distinct hindwing spots, I can only make this a Parnara sp. I am guessing P. apostata, but it is not typical of my other images of this species. Comments appreciated please.

26149

26150

[Psyche]

This is a typical male Parnara ganga.
FW spot 3 (like an arrowhead) is close to the large spot 2 ,almost touching; HW spots wide.

FOllowing Chiba & Eliot's key P. ganga lacks a HW spot 6.
http://yutaka.it-n.jp/hes/93040001.html
Typical examples here.
http://butterfliesvietnam.blogspot.com/2015/08/135-parnara-ganga-continental-swift.html
http://www.samuibutterflies.com/expeditions/hesperiidae/panaraganga/


P. apostata formerly treaed as the dark form of guttata.
Upperside very dark ; spots white , on HW in a stepladder arrangement; HW spot 6 usually present.
http://yutaka.it-n.jp/hes/93020001.html
http://nlliew66butterflies.blogspot.com/2015/02/parnara-apostata-snellen.html

P. guttata ;spots white; HW without a spot 6. FW with cellspots.
http://dearlep.tw/species.html?namecode=345486


P. bada; FW without cellspot ;HW spots small & irregular.
http://yutaka.it-n.jp/hes/93050001.html
http://nlliew66butterflies.blogspot.com/2015/02/the-ceylon-swift-parnara-bada-bada-moore.html
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r10tmE1ODKA/UPa4h8TT-8I/AAAAAAAAIw0/fRcHm9s-F9M/s1600/LKW+2009+parnara+bada.jpg

There are many examples in which the spots are relatively large often with a large spot HW spot 6.
There cause a lot of comfusion whether they are P. bada or ganga.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parnara_bada-Kadavoor-2015-08-22-001.jpg
https://static.inaturalist.org/photos/2464963/large.jpg?1443780933
https://www.thaibutterflies.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Parnara-bada.jpg
Following Chiba & Eliot's key these are P. bada with large HW spots.

The big problem is that none of the references (eg. Yutaka) show examples of P. bada with large HW spots.


TL Seow : Cheers.

[DaveChiangMai]

Many thanks for the detailed clarification.