Parantica melaneus

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Classis: Insecta
Cladus: Dicondylia
Subclassis: Pterygota
Cladus: Metapterygota
Infraclassis: Neoptera
Cladus: Eumetabola
Cladus: Endopterygota
Superordo: Panorpida
Cladus: Amphiesmenoptera
Ordo: Lepidoptera
Subordo: Glossata
Cladus: Coelolepida
Cladus: Myoglossata
Cladus: Neolepidoptera
Infraordo: Heteroneura
Cladus: Eulepidoptera
Cladus: Ditrysia
Cladus: Apoditrysia
Cladus: Obtectomera
Superfamilia: Papilionoidea

Familia: Nymphalidae
Subfamilia: Danainae
Tribus: Danaini
Subtribus: Danaina
Genus: Parantica
Species: Parantica melaneus
Subspecies: P. m. melaneus – P. m. plataniston – P. m. schoenigi – P. m. sinopion
Name

Parantica melaneus (Cramer, [1775])
Synonyms

Papilio melaneus Cramer, [1775]

References

Jumalon, J.N., 1971: Four new Philippine Danaids. The Philippine Scientist 8: 11–9

Parantica melaneus, the chocolate tiger, is a butterfly found in Asia that belongs to the crows and tigers, that is, the danaid group of the brush-footed butterflies family.

Description

Upperside: forewing black, Hindwing very dark purplish brown, with faintly bluish white subhyaline markings. Underside: forewing black, the apex broadly suffused with bright chestnut-brown; hindwing bright chestnut-browvn, with a patch on the costa and a portion of the disc and termen very much darker in most specimens. For the rest exactly resembles D. tytia in form and disposition of the subhyaline markings, but these are more clearly defined and it is proportionately smaller, the subterminal and terminal spots on the hindwing-generally very distinct. Antennas black; head and thorax black, spotted with white; abdomen bright ochraceous. Expanse: 94–100 mm.[1]
Range

The eastern Himalayas; Assam; Burma; Tenasserim, extending to the Malayan subregion.[1]
See also

Danainae
Nymphalidae
List of butterflies of India
List of butterflies of India (Nymphalidae)

References

Bingham, C.T. (1905). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma Butterflies. Vol. 1 (1st ed.). London: Taylor and Francis, Ltd.