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Issue: Vol. 5399 No. 1: 10 Jan. 2024
Type: Article
Published: 2024-01-10
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5399.1.7
Page range: 85-95
Abstract views: 1376
PDF downloaded: 14

A new species of silverline butterfly, Cigaritis Donzel, 1847 (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae), from the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot, India

National Centre for Biological Sciences; Tata Institute of Fundamental Research; GKVK Campus; Bellary Road; Bengaluru 560 065; India
Indian Foundation for Butterflies Trust. C-703; Alpine Pyramid Apts; near Canara Bank Layout; Kodigehalli; Bengaluru; Karnataka 560097; India
National Centre for Biological Sciences; Tata Institute of Fundamental Research; GKVK Campus; Bellary Road; Bengaluru 560 065; India
National Centre for Biological Sciences; Tata Institute of Fundamental Research; GKVK Campus; Bellary Road; Bengaluru 560 065; India
Lepidoptera Species discovery species description butterfly taxonomy Indian butterflies

Abstract

A new species, Cigaritis conjuncta sp. nov. (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae), is described based on five male and four female specimens from Honey Valley, Kodagu District, Karnataka, which is part of the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot, India. Cigaritis conjuncta sp. nov. is distinguished from all other congeners in India and Sri Lanka based on the following combination of diagnostic characters in the male: (a) dorsal forewing outer half, costal margin and nearly upper half of the cell black without orange markings, the remaining wing shining deep blue, (b) dorsal hindwing tornus pale orange-red with two black spots, (c) ventral forewing bands at end of discal cell conjoined, and (e) ventral hindwing subbasal and discal bands composed of spots that are not separated but conjoined to form broad bands that have irregular outlines, leaving only a narrow background colour in between. Female is similar on the ventral side, but entirely dark brown above. Male and female genitalia are dissected and figured for two paratypes of each sex, and natural history notes on the species are provided.

 

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