Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Breeding records of Hawk Moths

I have just published life history records of 3 common Hawk Moths in Singapore.  Click on the photo to find out more about these moths.

1. Pergesa acteus

2. Enpinanga borneensis

3. Eupanacra elegantulus

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Pergesa acteus (Cramer, 1779)

Name : Pergesa acteus (Cramer, 1779)
Family : SPHINGIDAE Latreille, 1802
Subfamily : MACROGLOSSINAE Harris, 1839
Tribe : Choerocampina Grote & Robinson, 1865
Larva host plant : Alocasia, Caladium


Pergesa acteus-MYGopeng_20100629_D8650-640

Jul 2010, Gopeng, Perak, Malaysia

Pergesa acteus-200812-DSC_2325-640 

Pergesa acteus-DSC_0102-640

Reference : The Sphingidae of Southeast-Asia



Life History Record : Dec 2006, May 2007, Dec 2008


Date : Dec 2008
Source : Joana , GCS Member
Location : Victoria park Road off Farrer Road, Singapore
Host Plant : Caladium bicolor

DSC_0965

cat-head-DSC_0972-400

Pupa-DSC_2125-400

Pergesa acteus-200812-DSC_2328


Date : May 2007
Source : Mark (mm), GCS Member
Location : Sunset Way, Singapore
Host Plant : Leea indica

Cat-Caterpillar2

Cat-DSC_0348-400

pupae-DSC_0129-640

Pergesa acteus-DSC_0096-400


Date : Dec 2006
Source : Elizabeth
Location : Singapore
Host Plant : Alocasia

Pergesa acteus-200612-DSC09329-400

Pergesa acteus-200612-DSC09333-400

Pergesa acteus-200612-DSC09420-400

Pergesa acteus-200612-IMG_2435-400


Enpinanga borneensis (Butler, 1879)

Name       : Enpinanga borneensis (Butler, 1879)
Family      : SPHINGIDAE Latreille, 1802
Subfamily : MACROGLOSSINAE Harris, 1839 
Tribe        : Macroglossini Harris, 1839

Male
Enpinanga borneensis-DSC_2169-640

Female
Enpinanga borneensis (f)-GanHome_20100111_D4961-640

Larva host plant : Dillenia suffruticosa (Simpoh Air)Dillenia-IMG_1512-480 

Reference : The Sphingidae of Southeast-Asia


Life History Record : Mar 2008, Jan 2009


Date : Mar 2008
Source : Gan CW
Location : Clementi Woods Park, Singapore
Host Plant : Dillenia suffruticosa (Simpoh Air)

Dillenia leaves
Dillenia-DSC02627-400Dillenia-DSC02625-400

 
Larva : 2nd instar
cat-IMG_1509-400 
Larva : 5th instar and 2nd instar
Cats-DSC_6077-640
Larva : Lateral and Dorsal view20080322-ClementiWoods-N5777
Larva : Pre-pupaCat-20080322-ClementiWoods-N5818-400
Adult:Enpinanga borneensis-200812-DSC_2162


Sunday, April 5, 2009

Butterfly trip to Gopeng, Perak – Part II

Continue from part I

In addition to the Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing, we also saw many magnificent and rare butterflies :

1. Doleschallia bisaltide continentalis (Autumn Leaf)

Doleschallia bisaltide continentalis-MYGopeng_20090312_0725-480

This subspecies is probably a migrant from Thailand and is synonym for Doleschallia bisaltide siamensis.  The other more common subspecies being Doleschallia bisaltide partipa and Doleschallia bisaltide australis (which is also a migrant).

2. Papilio nephelus annulus (Black & White Helen)

Papilio nephelus annulus-MYGopeng_20090313_0652-480

3. Ideopsis similis and Tirumala septentrionis (Dark Blue Tiger)

Ideopsis similis persimilis-MYGopeng_20090312_0180-480Tirumala septentrioni  septentrionis-MYGopeng_20090313_0543

I. similis is rare and is a lifer for me !


4. Thaumantis odana and Melanocyma faunula (Pallid faun)

Thaumantis odana  pishuna-MYGopeng_20090312_0214-480 Melanocyma faunula faunula-MYGopeng_20090312_0291-480

Unlike at Fraser’s Hill where the Pallid Faun are always perching high up on the tree, the Pallid faun here seems to be more friendly and flies very low and perches at eye level.  We saw 3 on one single trip

5. Catapaecilma major (Gray Tinsel) and 
    Rapala pheretima (Copper Flash)

Catapaecilma major emas-MYGopeng_20090313_0620-480

Rapala pheretima sequeira-MYGopeng_20090314_0500-480

The Gray Tinsel is a 5-STAR !

6. Koruthaialos sindu (The Bright Red Velvet Bob) and 
    Pseudocoladenia dan (Fulvous Pied Flat)

Koruthaialos sindu sindu-MYGopeng_20090313_0534-480

Pseudocoladenia dan dhyana-MYGopeng_20090314_0496-480

The Bright Red Velvet Bob is not uncommon at the the fringe of forest. 

We also saw 3 species of day flying ‘Tiger Moth’ on the last day !  These moths belong to the Geometridae family, Geometrinae subfamily and Dysphaniini tribe.

1. Dysphania sagana
Dysphania sagana-MYGopeng_20090314_0508-480

2. Dysphania subrepleta
Dysphania subrepleta-MYGopeng_20090314_0504-480 

3. Dysphania militaris
Dysphania militaris-MYGopeng_20090314_0487-480

You can see the other Dysphania moths in my Dysphania Flickr album.

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Butterfly trip to Gopeng, Perak – Part I

I have always wanted to visit this place, especially after reading about the Rafflesia and Rajah Brooke’s Birdwing at Ulu Geroh in MNS Naturalist magazine.

Finally in mid Mar, 5 of us made our way to Gopeng. During our 2.5 days there we sighted 100+ species of butterflies ! This is definitely a 5-STAR location for butterfly watcher

Accommodation

We stayed at Rumah Rehat Adeline which is located at Kampung Geruntum, about 7 Km from the town of Gopeng. The place is located in a durian plantation and next to a large oil palm plantation.

MYGopeng_20090313_0795-480
Simon (right) and I in front of Rumah Rehat Adeline

This is our the hut we stayed in. It has fan, light and mattresses. It is simple and clean and that’s all we need for our trip.

MYGopeng_20090314_0480-480

For those who enjoy cold shower, they have outdoor shower area which is fantastic after a hot day out.
MYGopeng_20090313_0783-480

and that’s me having a shower before dinner !MYGopeng_20090312_0772-480

Food

Our package includes 4 meals – breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper. The food here is one of the best and a friend commented it is many times better than what he had at Taman Negara.

All the food are prepared with the freshest ingredients and some prepared right in front of us. The picture below shows the cook preparing chicken soup in bamboo stick, one of many delicious dishes served.

Food-MYGopeng_20090313_0685-480

Tou Fu with Petai and prawn
Food-MYGopeng_20090313_0794-480

After a long hot day out chasing butterflies, nothing beats having hot delicious food waiting for you at the dining table.

MYGopeng_20090312_0792-480


Butterflies

The Rajah Brooke’s area is located 4 km away from where we stayed.

MYGopeng_20090314_0485-480

We have to cross a river to get there but on the first day, the bridge was submerged due to the heavy down pour the night before.

MYGopeng_20090311_0813-480

So we had to use the suspension bridge insteadMYGopeng_20090311_0807-480

Here is Simon checking out one of the tracks.MYGopeng_20090311_0815-480

Simon and I outside the RBB/Rafflesia visitor center
MYGopeng_20090312_0759-480

Finally, I get to see RBB puddling, up close !MYGopeng_20090312_0753-480

There were at least 50~60 of them spread over a 3 sqm area. What a spectacular sight !
RBB-MYGopeng_20090312_0747-640

A male RBB
RBB-MYGopeng_20090312_0282-480

The female RBB is very rare and does not puddle. They only feed on nectar and can usually be seen gliding high up at the canopy, feeding on bauhinia flowers. We were fortunate to see at least 4 of them feeding on wild Clerodendron about 10 feet above the ground.
RBB-MYGopeng_20090313_0579-480 

 

continue in Part II