malaiianus

3. Ssp. malaiianus Fruhstorfer, 1902⁵⁾ [♀] [♂: thomsoni, (Jordan, 1909)⁸⁾]

=thomsoni, (Jordan, 1909)⁸⁾ (nec (Bates, 1875)¹⁾) [♂, ♀] (Malay Peninsula)

(Distribution) [Map 153]

THAILAND: Peninsular area (?); W. MALAYSIA [Perak] Ipoh, Kg. Sahom (20Km SE of Ipoh), Cameron LL., Tapah Highlands Forest Reserve, [Pahang] Cameron HL., [Selangor] Genting HL., Gombak Setia.

(Episodes of discovery and original description)

Since Jordan (1908-1909) the ssp. thomsoni (or thomsonii ) has used the Malay Peninsula subspecies. This was due to the misuse of the subspecies rhadamathus described by Bates (1875) in Thomson’s “The Straits of Malaccas, etc.” (nominotypical ssp. because it was collected in Thailand). However, there is no official description of the Malay Peninsula subspecies, only that Fruhstorfer (1902) described it in Soc. ent. Vol. 17, p. 57 at the beginning of his paper as follows, “I use the name aeacus malaiianus for Troides aeacus form of the Malay Peninsula, because all aeacus originating from Perak, etc. are smaller than those from the overlying mainland of Asia and moreover always bear only smaller, round and isolated, but never lanceolate black discal spots of HW.” The subspecies is named after its habitat.

(Characteristics)

Much smaller in size than other subspecies. An altitudinal (around 1,000 m) subspecies with limited habitat. It is easy to distinguish it from other subspecies.a

(Spotted pattern)

♂: FW apex is sharply acute and outer margin is concave. The vein-stripes are narrower than in the nominotypical subspecies.

♀: FW has a pointed apex and the darkest blackish brown ground color of the subspecies with narrow and indistinct vein-stripes. The width of HW is narrow and outer margin is strongly wavy. The dark discal spots are the smallest in the subspecies.