teucrus

9. Ssp. teucrus (Joicey & Talbot, 1916)²⁴⁾ [♂, ♀]

(Distribution) [Map 19]

INDONESIA [Irian Jaya] Biak Is., Supiori Is.

(Episodes of discovery and original description)

A survey of butterflies on Biak Island, previously unknown, was conducted by the Pratt brothers from May to June 1914. Sixty-one new species and subspecies were discovered during the survey, including 135♂♂110♀♀, and this subspecies, the only Ornithoptera on the island, was discovered at the same time. Based on this large number of specimens, Joicey and Talbot (1916) described a new subspecies, teucrus (the name of the son of Telamon, king of Salamis in Greek mythology).

(Characteristics)

Both Sexes have stable spots and are easy to distinguish from other subspecies.

(Spotted pattern)

♂: The color of the patches is brighter, and the wing shape is more rounded. The green median stripe on the FW is distinct and tend to be radiate (ssp. urvillianus ♂-f. radiata). HW are almost completely free of black scales, and many individuals have a semi-translucent golden spot on the subcostal space and black discal spots are minute or absent. Red hairs on both lateral sides of thorax are abundant.

♀: Similar to ssp. poseidon from the west, but slightly smaller and with narrower wings. All the FW white spots are present, especially the cell-spot, which is distinctive, being large and occupying almost one third of the cell. The pale band on the HW is also large, often with white spot at the end of the cell, and two white spots on 6 space is characteristic of this subspecies.

(Variation)

The following individual variations are known.

♂-f. discalaureopunctata Deslisle & Sclavo, 2015¹⁰⁾: [Aberrant FW/HW pattern] FW like f. viridodentis, HW with several double rows of semi-translucent golden patches.

♂-f. aureoradians Deslisle & Sclavo, 2008⁹⁾ (➡hecuba )

♂-f. viridodentis Deslisle & Sclavo, 2008⁹⁾ (➡misoollae, arruana )

♂-f. aurora Ohya, 1999³⁷⁾: [Aberrant HW pattern] A subcostal golden spot and a low of several small submarginal golden spots on the HW, but black discal spots are totally absent.

♂-f. unipunctata (Dufrane, 1946)¹⁴⁾: [Aberrant HW pattern] With only a minute black discal spot on 6 spaces of HW.

♂-f. nathalieae Deslisle & Blanko, 2015¹⁰⁾: [FW/HW discoloration] The radial, anal and submarginal bands and median stripe are shortly bluish green basally, progressively changing to golden-orange and ending in an intensive orange coloration on FW.　The HW is green, with a kind of band of golden orange along antero-lateral margin from the costa to space 5.

♂-f. robitaillei Deslisle & Blanko, 2015¹⁰⁾: [FW discoloration] The radial and submarginal bands covered with brown scales subapically, gradually becoming darker towards apex. (Artificial ?)

♂-f. barbarossa Attal, 1988¹⁾: [Particular aberration] Two red down tufts appear each side of the dorsal thoracic green patch.

♀-f. pseudoaesacus Deslisle & Sclavo, 2015¹⁰⁾: All wings devoid of yellow scales as typically observed in ssp. aesacus.