Butterflies of Singapore

Life History of the Spotted Judy (Abisara geza niya)

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Abisara C. & R. Felder, 1860
Species: geza Fruhstorfer, 1904
Subspecies:niya Fruhstorfer, 1914
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 36-46mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plants: Embelia ribes (Myrsinaceae), Embelia canescens (Myrsinaceae).

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

Both sexes have their hindwings prominently angled at vein 4. On the upperside, the male is deep crimson brown with a pale, whitish and diffuse subapical band on the forewing and black submarginal spots in spaces 4, 5, and 1b on the hindwing. The female is paler and marked similarly but with its forewing subapical band much broader, and there are two diffuse whitish postdical bands on each wing. On the underside, both sexes are paler and each wing has a pair of diffuse, pale-purplish, postdiscal bands. The outer band on the hindwing has a series of black, white-edged, submarginal spots in spaces 1b, 4, 5 and 6. The female has broader and paler transverse bands. The hindwing discal band is dislocated at vein 4.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

The adults are moderately rare and are typically sighted in the forest understorey within nature reserves and in a hill park. The timid and skittish adults are often seen perching on leaves with half open wings, turning and hopping from one perch to the next.

Early Stages:

The local host plants known to date are both Emelia species. One of them, Emelia ribes, is more widespread and can also be found in hill parks and wastelands. The immature stages of the Spotted Judy feed on leaves of the host plant. In the first two instars, the caterpillar feeds by grazing on the leaf surface while in the later instars, it feeds by chomping away at the leaf edges. Between feeds, the caterpillars of all instars rest on the leaf underside.

Local host plant #1: Embelia canescens.

Local host plant #2: Embelia ribes.

A mating pair of the Spotted Judy.

Each egg is laid singly on the underside of a leaf on the host plant, typically close to the leaf edge. Each egg is lime green, somewhat conical in shape with a diameter of about 0.7mm. The egg surface is generally smooth and there is a mid-level belt of fine hairs encircling the egg.

Two views of an egg of the Spotted Judy.

Two views of a mature egg of the Spotted Judy.

It takes about 3.5-4 days for the egg to hatch. The young caterpillar consumes part of the egg shell to emerge. With a length of about 1.6-1.9mm, it has a greyish white body which is greenish on the dorsum of anterior segments. The colour of the head follows that of the body. There are moderately long black dorso-lateral setae and exceptionally long whitish sub-spiracular setae. The body color changes to pale yellow with a green undertone as it feeds and grows.

A newly hatched caterpillar resting next to its egg shell.

Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar, length: 2.8mm.

The first instar lasts about 4-5 days and the body length reaches about 3.5mm. Prior to the moult to 2nd instar, the body shortens and takes on a pumped up appearance. This shortening routine also occurs prior to all subsequent moults.

Two views of a late 1st instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 3.3mm.

The body color of the 2nd instar caterpillar is pale yellow with a greenish undertone. Overall, the appearance is little changed from the 1st instar. This instar lasts for about 4-5 days and the caterpillar grows to a length of about 6-6.3mm before the moult to the 3rd instar.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, newly moulted.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, length: 5.8mm.

Two views of a late 2nd instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 5.8mm.

The 3rd instar caterpillar is still yellowish green but with green dominating. Closer scrutiny reveals that the body surface is marked with numerous tiny whitish speacks. The dorso-lateral setae are black in colour while the sub-spiracular setae are still whitish. After 4-5 days in this stage with the body length reaching a maximum of about 10.5-11mm, the caterpillar moults to the 4th and final instar.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 6.5mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, length: 10.8mm.

Two views of a late 3rd instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 10.5mm.

A late instar caterpillar of the Spotted Judy found in the field.

The 4th instar caterpillar resembles the 3rd instar caterpillar closely but with much greater number of tiny whitish specks on the body surface. The body and the head are both yellowish green in color.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 11.8mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, length: 20.5mm.

The 4th instar lasts for about 7-8 days and the body grows up to a length of about 24-28mm. On the last day of this final instar, the caterpillar ceases food intake and its body shrinks in length. It then finds a spot on the leaf underside where it spins a silk pad and a silk girdle to secure itself for the pupation event.

Two views of a pre-pupatory larva of the Spotted Judy

Pupation takes place after 1 day of the pre-pupal period. The greenish pupa has a diamond-shaped outline, being broader at mid-body, less so at the anterior end, and rather pointed at the posterior end. The green body surface is marked with numerous paler and more yellowish specks. Laterally, there are whitish setae running along the fringe of the body. Each pupa is about 16-19mm in length.

Two views of a pupa of the Spotted Judy.

Six to seven days later, the pupa becomes darkened in color signaling the imminent emergence of the adult. The next day the adult butterfly emerges from the mature pupa.

Two views of the mature pupa of the Spotted Judy.

A newly eclosed Spotted Judy expanding its wings near its pupal case.

References:

[C&P4] The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, Malayan Nature Society.

Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 2nd Edition, 2012

A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore, Khew S.K., Ink On Paper Communications, 2nd Edition, 2015.

Text by Horace Tan, Photos by C K Chng, Nelson Ong, Frederick Ho, C J Huang, Sunny Chir, Khew SK and Horace Tan

ButterflyCircle 2015 - Looking Back...
The Year in Review

An Elbowed Pierrot (Caleta elna elvira) perches high on a grass blade, contemplating the future

2015 has certainly been an eventful year for ButterflyCircle members. In almost a blink of an eye, 12 months have sped past, and in this last blogpost for 2015, we review how the year has panned out for our winged jewels. After what started out to be a promising year for butterflies in the first few months of the year, we must say that 2015 has been one of the worst years that we've experienced in recent times, as far as butterfly activity in Singapore is concerned.

The expected annual peaks from April to June did not quite exactly turn out as expected, with strangely low counts encountered all over Singapore, although the phenomenon was also felt by our members in Malaysia and Thailand. Though diversity was not too bad, the overall experience was that "there was generally a perceivable drop in numbers" all around the region. Was it due to any significant weather phenomenon or some natural forces at work? We can't tell for sure.

In Singapore, the prolonged haze caused by the slash-and-burn land clearing in Indonesia caused one of the longest period of unhealthy air quality for the past decade, with the PSI readings going off into record highs and exceeded the index documented in 1997 when the haze was particularly bad back then. Butterfly population certainly took a heavy toll with the extended haze, lasting more than 8 weeks, and just when we expected a recovery, the end of the year monsoon months literally put a dampener on things.

In our round-up for 2015, we take a look back at the year, and the key activities that ButterflyCircle participated in. Butterfly education, conservation and awareness-promoting activities continued in 2015, and the group continued to feature prominently in collaboration with NParks and community activities.

The Butterflies of Singapore Blog continued to be a centre-piece and repository of butterfly-related articles. The blog, now into its 8th year, is still chugging along actively, with a minimum of an article a month, since the birth of the blog back in August 2007. With this article, we have written almost 750 posts to date, and from the blog overview database, there is a total of over 1,300,000 pageviews since the inception of the blog.

The Butterflies of Singapore FaceBook group is also very active, with posts from all over the world. The group membership has now exceeded 5,500 members and climbing steadily. As a social media sharing platform, FaceBook is one of the most efficient in its reach across the world. It also helps to connect like-minded people within the groups and there is no doubt that a single picture posted reaches a very large audience worldwide in a matter of minutes.

However, the FaceBook group is not the best in terms of searching and retaining a repository of photos and discussions. Social media, being what it is, tends to be more of a transient, "read-and-forget" mode of information dissemination. This is why the ButterflyCircle Forum is still maintained albeit the activity has slowed somewhat. But looking for a photo that someone posted back in 2005 is still quite easy with the built-in search engine within the forum software, compared to trying to find something in FaceBook!

On the blog, our Butterfly of the Month series continues into its eighth year and has featured a total of 98 butterfly species over that period. Every article features multiple photos of each species with a write-up that weaves in personal anecdotes and observations, besides a more detailed description of the butterfly of the month.

Our early stages expert, Horace Tan, continues with his detailed and meticulous documentation of the life histories of Singapore butterflies. This year, he has added a total of 19 detailed life history records to the Blog. The articles and photos showing the life history from egg to caterpillar to pupa, captures progression of each species' growth in professional quality that is second to none.

Horace has also started a new series in 2015, featuring the larval host plants, with a greater emphasis on the characteristics of each host plant itself. Each article comes with more detailed botanical data on the plant, as well as how the plant serves as a host for the caterpillars of various butterflies. A total of five larval host plant articles were posted this year, and we can look forward to more of Horace's interesting articles in the coming years.

One of our butterflies' favourite nectaring plant, Javanese Ixora

The series on butterflies' favourite nectaring plants featured one plant this year, the Javanese Ixora (Ixora javanica). Further research is being made for future articles and there will be additional nectaring plants that will be showcased in the coming year. These articles on plants are useful references for those who are starting butterfly gardens and are selecting butterfly-attracting plants.

Chiangmai, Chiang Dao, Doi Pha Hom Pok, Doi Suthep, Doi Lang, and more! Butterfly haven in Thailand

A small group of our members enjoyed our previous year's Chiangmai trip so much that we made two trips up north to Chiangmai and the surrounding mountains - two times in 2015! First trip was in March and then another trip in Oct/Nov. Both trips were well-facilitated by our friendly Italian "butterfly tour guide", Antonio. It was fun shooting at a location where there was so much butterfly biodiversity.

Exotic butterflies (to us in Asia) from Ecuador, South America

Our veteran member, Sunny Chir, made it even further, travelling all the way to Ecuador in South America with a group of Hong Kong friends. His postings on our FB site showed the awesome diversity and amazing variety of colours, shapes and patterns of butterflies from that part of the world.

ButterflyCircle at FOB15 with Mr Desmond Lee

ButterflyCircle members participated in the 4th Festival of Biodiversity held at VivoCity again for the third time in succession. We had our own dedicated booth again this year, and for the first time, we collaborated with Mr Foo JL and his group from the Seletar CC Butterfly Garden. Besides showcasing curated butterfly specimens, we had Mr Foo's help to showcase caterpillars and pupae. Live specimens were an instant draw with the younger visitors, and we were kept busy with the constant stream of visitors to our booth.

Our crowded booth at FOB15 with the Mr Foo and the Seletar CC gang

Special thanks to our ButterflyCircle volunteers who spent a large part of their weekend at VivoCity with us, and also to Mr Foo and his gang of enthusiastic lady members who thrilled the young visitors with their caterpillars and sharing their passion about butterflies. We were all exhausted after the 2 days at the FOB15 but satisfied that we managed to reach out to a large group of newbies. Once again, another round of thanks to our members, Goh EC, Brian Goh, Bob Cheong, Loke PF, Huang CJ, Simon Sng, Jerome Chua, Anthony Wong, Mark Wong, Chng CK, Horace Tan, Federick Ho, Nelson Ong, Tan CP, Nikita Lee, Siaomouse, Koh Cher Hern, Elizabeth Chow, Sunny Chir, Billy Oh and Jonathan Soong, for supporting ButterflyCircle and helping to man the booth at FOB15.

In memory of Mr Lee Kuan Yew

In March 2015, we had a period of sadness all over Singapore, when our nation lost its founding Prime Minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew. A tribute to Mr Lee was posted on our blog, as all around Singapore, we saw an outpouring of grief from people of all walks of life who remembered how Singapore progressed successfully under Mr Lee's visionary leadership.

NParks Butterfly Count and training sessions for members of the public

In August, just before the dreaded haze hit us, ButterflyCircle collaborated with the National Parks Board on the NParks Butterfly Count. The NParks Butterfly Count 2015 is a citizen science initiative, organised by NParks in collaboration with ButterflyCircle, to get Singaporeans involved in collecting valuable information about the butterflies in our parks and gardens. ButterflyCircle members were involved in the pre-survey training and hands-on field trips to help members of the public get the hang of doing their own butterfly surveys.

We continued to add more re-discoveries/discoveries of butterfly species to the Singapore Butterfly Checklist. This time around, we added a number of lookalikes that took a bit of time to validate with life history documentations and consultations with the regional experts. One species, however, stood out in that despite not being recorded in Singapore before, the Common Yeoman established a small colony at one of our urban gardens!

All in all, we added a total of seven new species to the checklist bringing the Singapore list to a total of 324 new species. It is beyond doubt that there will be more records to be documented, particularly amongst the lookalike species in the Lycaenidae and Hesperiidae families, and we look forward to these new additions in the coming years.

ButterflyCircle members and friends at the launch of the 2nd Edition of Butterflies of Singapore

Nov 2015 must be the highlight of the year for ButterflyCircle, as we launched the 2nd Edition of our "Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore". This time around, the book included 29 new records for Singapore that were observed and added after the 1st edition was launched in 2010. Once again, thanks to the hard work and diligence of ButterflyCircle members and associates, the 2nd edition was successfully launched by our Minister of Social and Family Development, Mr Tan Chuan Jin.

At the launch of the 2nd Edition of Butterflies of Singapore and charity recipients from ACRES, Garden City Fund and Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, with Ms Ho Ching and Minister Tan Chuan Jin

The launch on 8 Nov at the Botany Centre of the Singapore Botanic Gardens was a gathering of friends and nature lovers. This time, a special donation of hardcopy edition books were given to three nature/animal welfare charitable groups for raise funds for their respective causes. Special thanks to Ms Ho Ching once again, for sponsoring the 2nd Edition of the book, and for her constant support for butterfly conservation through the years.

And so ends an exciting and eventful 2015 for ButterflyCircle and our beloved winged jewels. We would like to take this opportunity to wish all our readers and supporters a MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR! Here's looking forward to 2016 and a more butterfly-ful year ahead!

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Sunny Chir, Ray Chua, Goh LC, Huang CJ, Khew SK, Loke PF and Horace Tan

Life History of the White Tipped Skipper (Erionota hiraca apicalis )

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Erionota Mabille, 1878
Species: hiraca Moore, 1881
Sub-Species: apicalis Evans, 1932
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 58-62mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plant:Caryota mitis (Arecaceae; common name: Fishtail Palm).

A male White Tipped Skipper taking off from its perch, giving a view of the upperside of its forewing and whitish wing tip.

The upperside view of a newly eclosed male White Tipped Skipper, showing the whitish wing tips of the forewings.

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

The eyes are red. On the upperside, the wings are dark brown. The forewing has three large, yellowish hyaline spots in spaces 2, 3 and cell-end, whereas the hindwing is unmarked. In the male, the forewing has a whitened apical patch (which is absent in the lookalike species: E. torus and E. thrax ). On the underside, the wings are paler brown with the upper half of the forewing and the entire hindwing dusted with pale buff.

The upperside view of a newly eclosed female White Tipped Skipper.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

The White Tipped Skipper is moderately rare in Singapore. It is the smallest of the three lookalike Erionota species in Singapore. The adults are fast fliers and are usually found in one particular patch of forest within the nature reserve. They have the habit of perching with closed wings in dark shady corners.

Early Stages:

The White Tipped Skipper has so far been found to breed on one palm species locally: Caryota mitis (Fishtail Palm), a very common palm found in many habitats in Singapore. The caterpillars feed on leaves of the host plant, and live in shelters formed by folding a leaf blade from one edge.

Local host plant: the Fishtail Palm.

The eggs are laid singly on the surface of a leaf of the host plant. Each dome-shaped egg is reddish/orangy brown with a basal diameter of about 2-2.1mm. The micropylar sits atop with a number of fine and whitish ridges running longitudinally from it.

Two views of an egg of the White Tipped Skipper.

Two views of a maturing egg, with the black head capsule distinguishable through the egg shell.

It takes about 5-6 days for the egg to hatch. The young caterpillar eats just enough of the shell to emerge, and has a length of about 5mm. Its cylindrical body is yellowish, and has a number of moderately long, whitish setae running laterally. The head capsule is black and right behind it a black collar mark is present on the prothorax. The newly hatched nibbles away most of the egg shell remnant before proceeding to construct its first leaf shelter.

The newly hatched caterpillar in its partially completed shelter.

The body turns yellowish green after the caterpillar has a few sessions of the leaf diet. By the time the caterpillar lies dormant for its moult to the 2nd instar, its length has reached 9.6-10mm. The 1st instar takes about 3 days to complete.

Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar, length:9.6mm.

The 2nd instar caterpillar still has a yellowish green body, and the head capsule is dark reddish brown. The black collar mark on the prothorax has faded almost entirely. As it grows in this instar, the body excretes a white powdery substance which coats the body surface on almost all body segments. This instar lasts about 3-4 days with the body length reaching about 15mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, newly moulted, length: 7.8mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 14.5mm.

The 3rd instar caterpillar still has a dark reddish brown head capsule with the body colour more whitish compared to the 2nd instar. There is no longer any trace of the black collar mark on the prothorax. The amount of whitish substance covering the body surface has become thicker. This instar lasts about 4-5 days with the body length reaching about 22-23mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 15mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 21.5mm.

The 4th instar caterpillar closely resembles the 3rd instar caterpillar. Just about all body segments are covered in the white substance in this instar. This penultimate instar lasts about 5-6 days with the body length reaching up to 32-35mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 22.5mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 28mm.

The 5th instar caterpillar is little changed from the 4th instar caterpillar. The body is almost all whitish (without the white substance), and soon after the moult, the entire body is covered evenly with a thick layer of the white powdery substance. The head capsule is initially orangy, but turn reddish brown and eventually dark brown within a few hours after the moult. This final instar takes about 7-8 days to complete with the body length reaching 51-53mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, newly moulted, length: 31mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, length: 41mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, length: 51mm.

Towards the end of 5th instar, the body of the caterpillar shortens in length and body colour assumes a uniform shade of creamy yellow. The fully grown caterpillar stays within its last shelter and excretes a copious amount of the whitish substance to line the interior wall of the shelter. Within the shelter, it constructs a transverse silk band near its posterior end. Once the caterpillar attaches its claspers to the silk band, it enters the dormant prepupatory phase which lasts about one day.

Two views of a dormant pre-pupa of the White Tipped Skipper.

The pupa secures itself with its cremaster attached to the transverse silk band. It has a short thorax and a rather long abdomen. The body is creamy yellow and has a slight greenish tinge in the thorax and wing case. The pupa body is coated with the white substance transferred through contact with the shelter wall. Length of pupae: 33.5-36.5mm.

Two views of a pupa of the White Tipped Skipper.

After 8-10 days, the pupa becomes mostly black in color in the wing pads and in the body segments. Eclosion takes place the next day.

Two views of a mature pupa of the White Tipped Skipper.

A newly eclosed White Tipped Skipper.

References:

[C&P4] The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, Malayan Nature Society, 1992.

Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 2nd Edition, 2012.

A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore, Khew S.K., Ink On Paper Communications, 2nd Edition, 2015.

Text and Photos by Horace Tan.

Butterfly of the Month - January 2016
The Three Spot Grass Yellow (Eurema blanda snelleni)

A Three Spot Grass Yellow feeding on the flower of the Creeping Yellow Daisy (Wedelia trilobata)

2016 is upon us already. As the euphoria of the new year countdowns die down, and the last strains of Auld Lang Syne fade from our minds, we get back to the grind and prepare for new challenges and look forward to opportunities in our work and family life. 2016 is a leap year, a special year that comes once in every four years. The leap year is usually associated with 29 days in February, and the year in which the Olympic games are held. This year, the Summer Olympics XXXI will be held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

On the global economic front, the outlook is generally bleak, with predictions of slow economic growth in many countries. In particular, the growth of Asian powerhouse, China, is likely to be severely dampened and the resultant effect is expected to impact many other Asian economies. Already, on the first trading day of the year, the Chinese stock exchange lost 7% of its value, triggering a "circuit breaker" in the system and halted trading for the day. Although trading resumed after intervention by the Peoples' Bank of China, the global stock markets will likely be unpredictable for the foreseeable future.

On our little red dot, life goes on. Following a successful (for the ruling party) General Elections, we see a new bunch of goodies for the citizens (e.g. the Skills Future Study awards), and more programmes to improve the lives of various stakeholder groups. A year after our city-state's 50th birthday, Singaporeans are looking ahead and planning for "what next?". SG50 + 1, as a Minister refers to 2016, starts a whole new anticipation about where Singapore should head.

A mating pair of Three Spot Grass Yellow (male top, female bottom)

I recently participated at the dialogue of a multi-agency symposium to talk about a "cleaner, greener and smarter Singapore". This SGconversations series will focus on topics related to A City in a Garden, Vibrant Community Spaces, Eco Smart Towns and a Green and Conserving Culture. Urban greenery should embody biodiversity as well. Lush plants and landscaped parks and gardens are not just for humans, but for our birds, butterflies, dragonflies, spiders, and a whole bunch of fauna that call Singapore home as well. Can developments and improvements for our city life co-exist harmoniously with biodiversity? Do share your ideas at the various symposium sessions or on the e-portals that collect feedback.

A puddling male Three Spot Grass Yellow

2016, where new year resolutions are made. What would be ours for the butterflies? For ButterflyCircle members, our next book project will commence in earnest this year. There will be urban and nature reserve surveys and a lot of work to be done on researching host plants, habitats and conservation strategies for butterflies in Singapore. There have been more requests to set up community butterfly gardens and other similar butterfly-conservation initiatives. What have we learnt from the existing efforts that we can share with these newbies?

A Three Spot Grass Yellow feeding on the flower of the Bandicoot Berry (Leea indica)

We continue into our 9th year with our Butterfly of the Month series. Let's start 2016 with a bright cheery yellow butterfly to symbolise hope and optimism. Our feature butterfly this month is the common and ubiquitous Three Spot Grass Yellow (Eurema blanda snelleni). A small but easily encountered butterfly, the species can sometimes be even abundant at certain times of the year.

An animated shot showing the three cell spots that are unique to identify this species

The Three Spot Grass Yellow is one of several lookalikes of the genus Eurema or commonly referred to as the Grass Yellows. The Three Spot Grass Yellow is unique in that it is the only species in the genus to feature three cell spots on the underside of the forewing. Males tend to have reduced upperside black marginal borders compared to the other related species in the genus. The females bear the typically broader and diffused borders. The apical streak on the underside of the forewing appears to be a feature that is mainly associated with females of this species.

The species can be found in urban locations as well as in the nature reserves. The Three Spot Grass Yellow is often seen feeding at flowering plants but is also observed to puddle in numbers along forest trails and sandy banks of streams which have been contaminated by decomposing organic material. Males appear to be commoner of the two sexes and is sometimes seen with other butterfly species when they are puddling.

Top : An outbreak of Three Spot Grass Yellows in Singapore's nature reserves.
Bottom : How many eggs can you count on this leaf?

Females of the Three Spot Grass Yellow have been observed to lay large clutches of eggs on the host plant Falcateria moluccana (Albizia), a fairly common tree that grows easily. In a single sitting, a female was observed to have laid at least 103 eggs on a single leaf of the host plant! This may explain the occasional outbreaks of this species, as "clouds of yellow butterflies" appear in parts of Singapore.

And so we look ahead to 2016 with a bit more optimism and cheer with our bright yellow Three Spot Grass Yellow and hope that this year will be a better year for all!

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Sunny Chir, Huang CJ, Khew SK, Loke PF, Horace Tan and Tan BJ

Butterfly Ecology Observations
Paedophilic behaviour in Butterflies?

I witnessed a strange butterfly behaviour on Pulau Ubin recently. This male Spotted Black Crow (Euploea crameri bremeri) was seen "attacking" a late instar caterpillar of its own species. I observed that the caterpillar was crawling and munching at a stem of its host plant, when the male butterfly descended on it and repeatedly clawed at the caterpillar.

In the photo of the adult butterfly with open wings, the curved dorsum of the forewing confirms it as a male. It is not known whether the caterpillar is a male or female. The Danainae have been observed to use their sharp foreleg claws to scrape the leaves and seed pods of some plants so that the wounded plant oozes fluids that the butterfly feeds on.

The sharp claws that can do damage to the plants can also inflict some serious damage to the caterpillar's skin. In the picture above, it can be seen that the butterfly is holding on to the caterpillar with its forelegs and the claws dug into it. This is the first time I have seen a butterfly "attack" a caterpillar although I wonder why it is doing so. A phenomenon known as "pupal rape" has been described for Heliconius butterflies where the males are observed to mate with a female even when it is still in the pupa! But in this case, trying to mate with a caterpillar would be futile!

If anyone has any suggestions as to why this adult Spotted Black Crow is attacking the caterpillar (which is also of the same species) with its claws, please share your observations and opinions.

Text and Photos by Khew SK

Butterfly Photography at Our Local Parks
Featuring : Seletar Country Club Butterfly Garden

Welcome to the Seletar Country Club Butterfly Garden

Golf courses are large tracts of greenery that are, ironically, not very "green". A typical golf course occupies tens of hectares of land that is usually cleared of vegetation for the course to serve its purpose. Referred to as "green deserts" by Dr Richard Corlett (formerly from the NUS), the greenery on golf courses may mislead one to think that the greens are rich with biodiversity. This is usually furthest from the truth, as the amount of environmentally-unfriendly fertilisers and pesticides used to keep golf greens pristine and manicured can adversely affect biodiversity.

However, one man set out to at least make an effort to mitigate the "golf course effect" at his club. Mr Foo Jit Leang, owner of a private software company, wanted to show that golf courses need not necessarily be devoid of wildlife. During a visit by Prof Peter Ng of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum, and the Seletar Country Club Chairman, Mr Khoo Teng Chye, they challenged Mr Foo to try to create pockets of planted areas that can attract biodiversity to the club premises.

Armed with only his love for nature, and the information that he could get from available books and the internet, and amongst the nature community in Singapore, Mr Foo set out to plant butterfly-attracting host and nectaring plants at a small patch of land next to the clubhouse in 2012. Today, the Seletar Country Club Butterfly Garden, as it is known, occupies an area of about 500-600 sqm and is usually teeming with butterflies on a good sunny day.

Mr Foo and the visitors who spent time at the Butterfly Garden have, to date, spotted a total of 102 butterfly species at the three-year old project. On a good day, an observer can usually expect to see about 20-25 different species of butterflies, from the large Papilionidaes to the small and skittish Hesperiidaes. Combining host plants with nectaring plants around the garden, the SCC Butterfly Garden is now a magnet for butterflies, as well as other insects, birds and even small reptiles.

Different views of the SCC Butterfly Garden - from open areas to intimate corners for butterflies

This morning, I visited Mr Foo and the SCC Butterfly Garden. It was a bright sunny day when I arrived and the butterflies were already up and about, and feeding on the flowers of the String Bush and Shepherd's Needles bushes. A few Plain Tigers and Dark Glassy Tigers were chasing each other amongst the shrubbery.

I spotted a Leopard (Phalanta phalantha phalantha) ovipositing on its caterpillar host plant, the Batoko Plum. A Lime Butterfly (Papilio demoleus malayanus) zipped past me, stopping for a fleeting moment to feed on the flower of the Pink Snakeweed.

Mr Foo and our young ButterflyCircle member Jonathan Soong joined me, and we walked around the garden as Mr Foo shared his stories of the challenges of setting up the butterfly garden, and maintaining the momentum of his initiative. He had to "educate" the club's gardeners not to spray pesticides and not to pull out plants that they considered "weeds". Many butterfly host plants are what landscape designers see as invasive and ugly weeds. However, without these host plants, one cannot expect to see a wider variety of butterfly species. Mr Foo proudly shared that he has bred a total of 42 different species of butterflies found at the garden.

The "closed-loop" water-based habitat for butterflies, dragonflies and other critters

Besides the lush greenery that the Butterfly Garden showcases today, Mr Foo also brought us to the "closed-loop" stream nearby. This stream creates a water-based habitat with appropriate plants to attract dragonflies and butterflies. The body of water is constantly moving, using the topography of the land and a simple pump to move the water around. We noticed a number of the diminutive Pygmy Grass Blues fluttering happily around the bushes near the stream.

Walking back to the main Butterfly Garden, I spotted a hungry Painted Jezebel (Delias hyparete metarete) feeding on the flowers of the String Bush. It kept me busy chasing it for about half an hour, teasing me as it came close, and then quickly flitted away as I approached it. After a tiring game of cat-and-mouse with it, I finally managed to take a decent shot of it on the String Bush flowers.

The scorching overhead noon sun was taking a toll on us, and we quickly retreated to the clubhouse for a yummy lunch, courtesy of Mr Foo. Looking back at the Butterfly Garden, I would consider it a successful rehabilitation of a piece of land adjacent to a somewhat sterile golf course. The butterfly diversity is considered very good, and it took a simple initiative to populate an otherwise featureless piece of land with butterfly-attracting plants to rejuvenate the biodiversity.

Mr Foo sharing his stories about the Butterfly Garden

Mr Foo has gone on to spread his enthusiasm to schools, childcare centres, community gardens, and to anyone who is interested to set up a butterfly garden. He has unselfishly shared plant cuttings, seeds and always willing to impart his experience and knowledge to give a helping hand to our butterflies to survive and thrive in urban areas in Singapore.

"Green Desert" alert!! - a view across the Butterfly Garden to the golf course beyond

Mr Foo has also shown golf course owners that they can do something for nature, and to use part of the large tracts of land that these golf courses sit on, to support our local biodiversity, instead of maintaining their unsavoury reputation for being "green deserts" in Singapore. Interestingly, for a small island of only about 714 sqkm, Singapore has 21 golf courses! Imagine if small Butterfly Gardens sprout up in all these golf courses. We will need more people like Mr Foo to achieve this dream!

And so we have another local "garden" at the Seletar Country Club that is a haven for butterflies. Photographers and nature lovers can visit this SCC Butterfly Garden to have their fill of nature's flying jewels, and you might meet Mr Foo walking around and infect you with his passion for nature and butterflies!

How to get to Seletar Country Club Butterfly Garden

Driving/Taxi: From the Central Expressway heading north, use the exit 16 to Seletar West Link and turn into Seletar Club Road. There is ample free parking at the premises.

By MRT/Bus : Drop at Khatib MRT, and cross the road. Take Bus 85 to just before the TPE, alight and switch to Bus 103 and alight just before West Camp Road and walk to Seletar CC. Alternatively, take Bus 39 and alight at the stop before Seletar Camp G and switch to Bus 103 and alight just before West Camp Road and walk to Seletar CC.

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Janice Ang, Bob Cheong, Foo JL, Khew SK, Koh CH and Jonathan Soong

Checklist of Butterflies Spotted at Seletar CC Butterfly Garden as at Jan 2016 (by Mr Foo JL)

Common Birdwing - Troides helena cerberus
Common Rose - Pachliopta aristolochiae asteris
Common Mime - Papilio clytia clytia
Lime Butterfly - Papilio demoleus malayanus
Common Mormon - Papilio polytes romulus
Common Bluebottle - Graphium sarpedon luctatius
Tailed Jay - Graphium agamemnon agamemnon
Painted Jezebel - Delias hyparete metarete
Striped Albatross - Appias libythea olferna
Mottled Emigrant - Catopsilia pyranthe pyranthe
Lemon Emigrant - Catopsilia pomona pomona
Orange Emigrant - Catopsilia scylla cornelia
Common Grass Yellow - Eurema hecabe contubernalis
Three Spot Grass Yellow - Eurema blanda snelleni
Plain Tiger - Danaus chrysippus chrysippus
Common Tiger - Danaus genutia genutia
Blue Glassy Tiger - Ideopsis vulgaris macrina
Common Evening Brown - Melanitis leda leda
Common Palmfly - Elymnias hypermnestra agina
Malayan Eggfly - Hypolimnas anomala anomala
Great Eggfly - Hypolimnas bolina bolina
Jacintha Eggfly - Hypolimnas bolina jacintha
Autumn Leaf - Doleschallia bisaltide bisaltide
Chocolate Pansy - Junonia hedonia ida
Grey Pansy - Junonia atlites atlites
Peacock Pansy - Junonia almana javana
Blue Pansy - Junonia orithya wallacei
Tawny Coster - Acraea terpsicore
Leopard Lacewing - Cethosia cyane
Green Baron - Euthalia adonia pinwilli
Plain Nawab - Polyura hebe plautus
The Apefly - Spalgis epius epius
Lesser Grass Blue - Zizina otis lampa
Pygmy Grass Blue - Zizula hylax pygmaea
Cycad Blue - Chilades pandava pandava
Gram Blue - Euchrysops cnejus cnejus
Ciliate Blue - Anthene emolus goberus
Pointed Ciliate Blue - Anthene lycaenina miya
Centaur Oak Blue - Arhopala centaurus nakula
Peacock Royal - Tajuria cippus maxentius
Common Tit - Hypolycaena erylus teatus
Chestnut Bob - Iambrix salsala salsala
Palm Bob - Suastus gremius gremius
Yellow Palm Dart - Cephrenes trichopepla
Common Palm Dart - Telicota colon stinga
Small Branded Swift - Pelopidas mathias mathias
Lesser Dart - Potanthus omaha omaha
Large Dart - Potanthus serina
Plain Palm Dart - Cephrenes acalle niasicus
Conjoined Swift - Pelopidas conjunctus conjunctus
Dingy Bush Brown - Mycalesis perseus cepheus
Dark Brand Bush Brown - Mycalesis mineus macromalayana
Common Four Ring - Ypthima huebneri
Palm King - Amathusia phidippus phidippus
Short Banded Sailor - Phaedyma columella singa
Malayan Lascar - Lasippa tiga siaka
Dark Glassy Tiger - Parantica agleoides agleoides
Pea Blue - Lampides boeticus
Copper Flash - Rapala pheretima sequeira
Black Veined Tiger - Danaus melanippus hegesippus
Chocolate Albatross - Appias lyncida vasava
Detached Dart - Potanthus trachala tytleri
Cornelian - Deudorix epijarbas cinnabarus
Slate Flash - Rapala manea chozeba
Transparent Sixline Blue - Nacaduba kurava nemana
Dark Malayan Sixline Blue - Nacaduba calauria malayica
Blue Nawab - Polyura schreiber tisamenus
Dark Caerulean - Jamides bochus nabonassar
Common Line Blue - Prosotas nora superdates
Formosan Swift - Borbo cinnara
Colonel - Pandita sinope sinope
Common Sailor - Neptis hylas papaja
Leopard - Phalanta phalantha phalantha
Common Banded Awl - Hasora chromus chromus
Striped Blue Crow - Euploea mulciber mulciber
Common Dartlet - Oriens gola pseudolus
Chocolate Demon - Ancistroides nigrita maura
Tailless Line Blue - Prosotas dubiosa lumpura
Contiguous Swift - Polytremis lubricans lubricans
Vagrant - Vagrans sinha sinha
Bush Hopper - Ampittia dioscorides camertes
Striped Black Crow - Euploea eyndhovii gardineri
Plain PlushBlue - Flos apidanus saturatus
Brown Awl - Badamia exclamationis
Great Swift - Pelopidas assamensis
Cabbage White - Pieris canidia canidia
Besta Palm Dart - Telicota besta bina
Grass Demon - Udaspes folus
Common Red Flash - Rapala iarbus iarbus
King Crow - Euploea phaenareta castelnaui
Banana Skipper - Erionota thrax thrax
Common Awl - Hasora badra badra
Baron - Euthalia aconthea gurda
White Tipped Skipper - Erionota hiraca apicalis
Pale Grass Blue - Zizeeria maha serica
Pale Palm Dart - Telicota augias augias
Bamboo Paintbrush Swift - Baoris farri farri
Vinous Oakblue - Arhopala athada athada
Full Stop Swift - Caltoris cormasa
Linna Palm Dart - Telicota linna
Silver Forget-Me-Not - Catochrysops panormus exiguus
Rustic - Cupha erymanthis lotis

Butterflies' Larval Host Plants #6
Crown Flower (Calotropis gigantea)

This 6th instalment of our Butterflies' Larval Host Plants series features the Crown Flower (Calotropios gigantea), a species from the Apocynaceae family (commonly known as the dogbane familiy) which has many members possessing the ability to exude milky latex/sap. Many of these plants are known to be poisonous.

Leaves of the Crown Flower.

The Crown Flower is native to South Asia, Southeast Asia, China and tropical Asia. In Singapore, it is typically cultivated in gardens to attract a variety of insects. Wild specimens of the Crown flower are rarely seen. All plant parts of the Crown Flower have an abundance of milky latex, and will "bleed" easily when the plant part is cut or scratched. It is considered a poisonous plant as its milky sap has been found to cause a reversible vision loss and skin irritation, and even death when ingested. Even so, the Crown Flower is also a traditional medicinal plant and extracts from various plant parts have been used in treatment of many conditions such as syphilis, sores, ulcers and boils etc.

Plant Biodata :
Family : Apocynaceae
Genus : Calotropis
Species : gigantea
Synonyms : Asclepias gigantea
Country/Region of Origin : Southeast/South Asia, China and tropical Afica
English Common Names : Giant Milkweed
Other Local Names : Remiga, Madar, Kapal-kapal, 牛角瓜
Larval Host for Butterfly Species: Danaus chrysippus chrysippus (Plain Tiger).

Crown Flower plants found in parks in Singapore, showing the upright stem and the large, oval-shaped leaves.

The Crown Flower is a medium to large evergreen shrub, growing up to a height of 3-4m. The leaves are simple, opposite, fleshy, obovate in shape. Young leaves are densely woolly, giving a whitish appearance.

A view showing the simple and opposite arrangement of leaves of the Crown Flower.

A pair of very young leaves showing the woolly appearance.

The top view of another pair of more mature leaves which still have the woolly appearance on the upperside.

Fully grown leaves are large and can be 10-20cm in length, 6-12cm in width. The upperside is light green and the underside whitish green. The leaf base is deeply heart-shaped, and the petiole is relatively short.

The underside of a mature leaf.

The upperside of a mature leaf.

Flowers of the Crown Flower occur in axiliary clusters. Each flower is about 3-4cm wide, white or pale lilac-blue. Each has five pointed petals and a small "crown" rising from the center. These flowers attract a variety of insects such as bees and butterflies which act as pollinators in the reproduction process. In some countries, the flowers are used in floral arrangements due to their long-lasting property.

A cluster of white flower buds.

A cluster of the lilac flower buds.

A cluster of flowers, white variety.

A cluster of flowers, lilac variety.

Each fruit of the Crown Flower is a large, green inflated pod, curved on one side and 6 to 10cm in length. When mature, it splits open to expose the many seeds packed within. Each brown seed is flattened and broad, with a tuft of whitish hair 2 to 3cm long.

A fruit of the Crown Flower.

A fruit of the Crown Flower, split to reveal the brown seeds.

Seeds of the Crown Flower next to the mature fruit, waiting for the next breeze to take them along.

Another view of the same group of exposed seeds.

In Singapore, the Crown Flower also serves as the larval host plant for one butterfly species: Danaus chrysippus chrysippus (Plain Tiger), a species in the Danainae subfamily of Nymphalidae.

A Plain Tiger taking nectar from the flowers of the Snakeweed.

An egg of the Plain Tiger laid on the underside of a leaf of the Crown Flower.

Eggs of the Plan Tiger is laid singly on the underside of a leaf of the Crown Flower. Due to the large size of the leaf, at times more than one egg can be found laid on the same leaf. The life cycle of the Plain Tiger is fast paced throughout. The Plain Tiger caterpillars feed on the lamina of the leaf of the Crown Flower. They stay on the underside of the leaf when eating and resting between feeds. In the earlier instars, the caterpillar has the habit of marking out a circular patch on the leaf, before devouring the patch. The milky sap excreted in the process appears to have no effect on the caterpillar.

A early instar caterpillar of the Plain Tiger resting within its circular patch of territory.

Another early instar caterpillar part way through devouring the circular patch of lamina.

In later instars, the caterpillar will simply eat through the lamina away from the leaf margin or eat along it.

A pair of late instar caterpillars of the Plain Tiger feeding on the underside of the same leaf.

A final instar found resting on the underside of a leaf in Eco garden.

Close-up view of the same caterpillar.

Typically, the Plain Tiger caterpillar will pupate on the underside of a leaf of the Crown Flower. The pupation site is usually on the raised mid-rib of the leaf.

A pupa of the Plain Tiger found in an Eco garde, possibly parasited.

An empty pupal case of the Plain Tiger on the underside of a leaf of the Crown Flower, indicating that another adult has made it.

A walk in a garden where the Crown Flower is planted will usually come with a sight of the Plain Tiger butterflies fluttering around in the vicinity. If this is the case, it will be rewarding to examine the leaves for any foliage damage and the presence of the beautifully coloured caterpillars of the Plain Tiger.

References:

The Concise Flora of Singapore : Hsuan Keng Singapore University Press, 1990.

1001 Garden Plants in Singapore : Boo Chih Min, Kartini Omar-Hor and Ou-Yang Chow Lin, National Parks Board, 2nd Edition 2007.

Calotropis gigantea - Wikipedia.

Calotropis gigantea -DNA, Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum - .

Kapal-kapal, Philippine Medicinal Plants.

Text and Photos by Horace Tan.

Red for Prosperity!
Red Butterflies in Singapore

A Common Red Flash (Rapala iarbus iarbus) perches on a lallang blade

In about a week's time, Chinese communities from all over the world will celebrate the Spring Festival or Chunjie 春节 or Chinese Lunar New Year. During this period of festivities, red is a favourite colour in most Chinese households and businesses. From new red clothes to red banners to red packets, it is a traditional Chinese belief that red is auspicious. Everyone is encouraged to put a little bit of red in their lives to ensure that they reap some of the prosperity that comes with the New Year.

Monkey with Peach © freepik.com

This year, 2016, we will welcome the Red Fire Monkey on 8 Feb. The Monkey is the ninth sign in Chinese astrology, after the goat, and followed by the rooster. The number “9” is associated with ambition, activity, smartness, mischief and adventure. The sheep/ram/goat of 2015 will be making its exit by midnight on 7 Feb, as we herald the new Year of the Monkey.

A Malayan Plum Judy (Abisara saturata kausambioides) feeding on moisture on a leaf surface

The colour red has a variety of associations in different cultures across religions, nationalities and races. In prehistoric cave paintings, red pigments were extracted from iron oxide or red ochre to depict the then "civilised" world's view of their daily life. Prehistoric man's "blog" of sorts, where he documented on the walls of his cave, anything from a successful hunt to his adventures across unknown lands.

A red door in Chinese architecture. Imperial Palace Complex, Beijing, China

In ancient China, red played an important role in the culture of Imperial China. In Chinese philosophy, red represented fire, one of the five elements. During the Zhou, Han, Jin, Song and Ming Dynasties, red was considered a noble colour, and it was featured in all court ceremonies, from coronations to sacrificial offerings, and weddings. Red was featured prominently in architecture, and used liberally on walls of buildings, columns and beams and entrance portals. The gates of imperial palaces were usually painted red.

The red cross of a soldier of the Crusades

The Roman Empire celebrated red as a colour of courage and blood. Roman soldiers wore red tunics, whilst generals often sported large red cloaks. The Emperor Charlemagne painted his palace red and wore red shoes as symbol of his authority. In Christianity it represented the blood of Christ and the Christian martyrs; in 1295 it became the colour worn by Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church.

Red door detail. Imperial Palace Complex, Beijing, China

Red is the colour of extremes. It is often used to symbolise courage, passion, seduction, violence, danger, anger, auspiciousness, celebration, good luck, joy and adventure. However, red is often associated with having a dark side, particularly in Christian theology. It was associated with sexual passion, anger, sin, and the devil (which is often portrayed graphically as a horned being with a tail and totally red in colour). And whenever someone mentioned a "red light district" in a city, it is a part of the city that few people would want to openly associate with.

Red is a colour that is most often used on national flags! Did you know that over 77% of the world's national flags contain the colour red? Of the 192 flags of the independent countries of the world, 148 feature the colour red on their flags, including Singapore's which features the colours red and white.

What about our butterflies then? In Singapore, we have a number of species of butterflies that are predominantly red in colour. Their "redness" ranges from a bright red to a deep maroon red. Let us take a look at some of these red butterflies that can be found here in Singapore.

Burgundy red Commander (Moduza procris milonia)

The largest predominantly red butterfly is the Commander (Moduza procris milonia). This Nympalidae butterfly features a deep maroon red on the upperside of its wings with a white macular band across both wings. The species is relatively common and is widespread in distribution from the nature reserves to urban parks and gardens. The Lacewings, of which there are three species in Singapore, also have reds on their wings, but they do appear to be more deep-orange rather than predominantly red and are hence excluded from this list of red butterflies.

A Spotted Judy (Abisara geza niya) perches on a fern

The next group that features a number of red butterflies are from the subfamily Riodinidae. Also known as "Metalmarks", this group of butterflies feature deep red butterflies. Some species are adorned with blue or silvery spots and marks. Most are shy forest butterflies that prefer the shaded understorey of the forested areas in Singapore.

Top : Malayan Plum Judy (Abisara saturata kausambioides) Middle : Harlequin (Taxila haquinus haquinus) Bottom : Lesser Harlequin (Laxita thuisto thuisto)

Amongst the deep red Riodinidae that are found in Singapore are the Malayan Plum Judy (Abisara saturata kausambioides) and the Spotted Judy (Abisara geza niya). Two other members of the family also appear red, but marked with silver or bluish spots. These are the Harlequin (Taxila haquinus haquinus) and the Lesser Harlequin (Laxita thuisto thuisto). Both are rare butterflies, in particular the Harlequin where it is known from only a single location on Singapore island.

Top : Cornelian (Deudorix epijarbas cinnabarus) Bottom : A rather worn-out Eliot's Cornelian (Deudorix elioti)

The remaining red-coloured butterflies found in Singapore are small and zippy butterflies from the subfamily Theclinae. Two species from the genus Deudorix are the Cornelian (Deudorix epijarbas cinnabarus) and the Eliot's Cornelian (Deudorix elioti) both of which feature red uppersides with thick black borders. Interestingly, Cornelian (sometimes spelt Carnelian) is a brownish-red mineral which is commonly used as a semi-precious gemstone.

The final group of red butterflies belong to the genus Rapala often referred to as the "Flashes" for their strong rapid flight. The most often spotted and prominently red species is the Common Red Flash (Rapala iarbus iarbus). This species tends to open its wings to sunbathe, showing off its red uppersides more often than its closely-related cousins.

Upperside of a newly eclosed Scarlet Flash (Rapala dieneces dieneces)

Of the other Flash species, the males of the Scarlet Flash (Rapala dieneces dieneces), the Suffused Flash (Rapala suffusa barthema) and the Copper Flash (Rapala pheretima sequeira) also sport reddish uppersides. Although not very rare, these species are not often observed to show off their uppersides of the wings very frequently, and hence field shots of these butterflies depicting their uppersides are fairly rare.

© freepik.com

And so we now know a little more about our red butterflies in Singapore, and whether you choose to display a bit more red in your life this coming Chinese New Year for prosperity and good luck, here's wishing a Happy Chinese New Year and a Gong Xi Fa Cai to all our readers near and far! And we hope that the year of the Fire Monkey will bring good luck, health and prosperity to you in 2016!

Text by Khew SK : Photos by James Chia, Sunny Chir, Khew SK, Horace Tan and Bene Tay.

Butterfly of the Month - February 2016
The Plain Lacewing (Cethosia methypsea methypsea)

We are at the threshold of a new Chinese Lunar Year and today is the 2nd last day of the Year of the Ram/Goat/Sheep. Tomorrow night, many Chinese families will gather for the traditional New Year's Eve Reunion dinner (年夜飯) during which family members from near and far, gather to celebrate the New Year. At the stroke of 12 midnight on Monday 8 Feb 2016, we will welcome the Year of the Fire Monkey.

In Singapore, Chinese New Year's celebration dinners usually start with the traditional "tossing of the raw fish salad" or Yusheng. As to the ongoing debates about the origins of this traditional Chinese New Year staple, I shall leave it to the experts to conclude. However, the practice of everyone standing around a plate of Yusheng and tossing the ingredients whilst uttering auspicious phrases will continue in Singapore and Malaysia.

Class of 1984 Architecture classmates all ready to toss Yusheng and bring in the good luck for the Chinese New Year!

This year, however, we are likely going to see less of the most important ingredient - raw fish in Yusheng. Ironically, after a few cases of food poisoning caused by raw fish contaminated with Group B Streptococcus (GBS), many restaurants are likely to avoid serving fresh water raw fish in their Yusheng this year, replacing it with "safer" alternatives like abalone, scallops or even cooked fish instead.

The global economic gloom seems to have maintained its march into February and appears to be spoiling the Chinese New Year cheer. Local market conditions continue to be weak, with whispers of retrenchments and salary cuts in many companies going around the office grapevine. Reports of a likely hiring freeze amongst companies in Singapore dampened the mood at the end of last year, but more recent surveys indicated a more optimistic outlook for employees in 2016.

On the environmental front, the Land Transport Authority gazetted its much-awaited Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Phase 1 report for the Cross Island MRT line. This MRT line is currently planned to cut through a part of the Central Catchment Nature Reserve, and nature groups and environmentalists are concerned about the impact of such a major engineering construction running through a nature reserve.

Whilst the EIA suggested a number of mitigation measures to alleviate the impact of the preliminary investigation works and eventual construction works in the nature reserve, spokespersons for the nature groups shared their concerns about the long-lasting repercussions to one of Singapore's precious remaining nature reserve forests. The debates are likely to continue and it is hoped that the outcome will not result in a win-lose scenario for the environment.

Speaking of the forested nature reserves, we feature the third Lacewing butterfly species found in Singapore, the Plain Lacewing (Cethosia methypsea methypsea). A forest-dependent species, the Plain Lacewing was first discovered in Singapore some time in the 1990's. A previously-unrecorded species in Singapore's butterfly fauna, this species was absent from the early authors' checklists.

After a few final sporadic sightings in early 2000, the Plain Lacewing mysteriously disappeared and there were no reliable sightings of the species for a period of fourteen years until late 2014, when they suddenly re-appeared. A female was spotted ovipositing on its host plant and its life history finally recorded. The caterpillar host plant, a Passifloraceae vine found relatively commonly in the forested areas, is not uncommon. However, it is curious as to why the species abruptly disappeared for so long and then re-appeared just as suddenly.

The Plain Lacewing continued to be observed in 2015 and 2016, and it is hoped that the species will continue to be extant in Singapore. The host plant and the forest habitats that this species prefers are of critical concern if something were to happen to the Central Catchment Nature Reserves and the native flora is adversely affected in our primary and secondary forests.

The Plain Lacewing looks superficially similar to the other two Cethosia species found in Singapore - the Malay Lacewing (Cethosia hypsea hypsina) and the Leopard Lacewing(Cethosia cyane). On the underside of the male, the Plain Lacewing is likely to be confused with the Leopard Lacewing, with the exception of a much thinner white submarginal line on the hindwing compared to the Leopard Lacewing's thicker band.

The male and female of the Plain Lacewing are generally similar in appearance, whilst the other two species have distinctive characteristics that can separate the male and female easily. On the upperside, the forewing of the Plain Lacewing is black with a white subapical band (broader in the female than in the male) beyond the cell; the basal area is rich orange-red for the male and reddish brown for the female.

On the underside, the wings are orange-red with reddish areas confined to the basal half with white fasciae adorned with black spots. The forewing cell has several black-edged, pale blue transverse stripes. The wing borders are dark brown and deeply indented with lace-like pattern of white markings. The hindwing has a narrow white submarginal band which distinguishes it from the other two related species (absent in the Malay Lacewing, and much thicker in the Leopard Lacewing).

The males have a slightly deeper orange-red colour when in flight, compared to the Malay and Leopard Lacewings. It appears to be a faster flyer than the other two, and at times, seem to fly for long periods of time without resting. In the morning hours, the Plain Lacewing can be observed to feed on flowering plants, whilst later in the day, it can be encountered resting on the top surfaces of leaves in the shady forest understorey.

And so, with this colourful Lacewing, we look forward to the rest of 2016 and the Year of the Fire Monkey with optimism. As we celebrate Chinese New Year over the next couple of weeks, all of us at ButterflyCircle would like to take this opportunity to wish all our Chinese friends and readers a....

"Gong Xi Fa Cai and a

Happy & Prosperous Chinese New Year!"

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Sunny Chir, Chng CK, Federick Ho, Khew SK, Koh CH, Loke PF, Nelson Ong and Horace Tan

Life History of the Common Tiger (Danaus genutia genutia)

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Danaus Kluk, 1802
Species: genutia Cramer, 1779
Subspecies: genutia Cramer, 1779
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 70-80mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plants: Cynanchum ovalifolium (Apocynaceae), Cynanchum tunicatum (Apocynaceae).

Common Tiger form genutia.

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

On the upperside, the forewings are orange with a series of white spots in a broad, black apical border. The hindwings are either orange in form genutia or white with border tinged with orange in form intermedius. All veins on both fore- and hindwings are broadly marked with black. Marginal and submarginal series of small white spots are embedded in a black border at terminal margins of both wings. On the underside, the wings are similarly marked as per the upperside but with apical border orangey brown on the forewing

Common Tiger form intermedius.

Common Tiger form genutia.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

Both forms of the Common Tiger can be found in Singapore with form genutia being the more common of the two. This species is typically found in urban or sub-urban areas where its host plants are available. The adults typically visits flowers and has a fondness for sap exuded by Crotalaria spp.

Early Stages:
Locally, caterpillars of Common Tiger have been found to feed on leaves of two host plants in Apocynaceae: Cynanchum ovalifolium and Cynanchum tunicatum. Elsewhere in the region, Raphistemma spp. (Apocynaceae) have also been recorded as larval hosts in Malaysia and Thailand.

Local host plant #1: Cynanchum ovalifolium.

Local host plant #1: Cynanchum tunicatum.

The eggs of the Common Tiger are laid singly on the leaf of the host plant, typically on the underside. The milky white egg is shaped somewhat like a truncated rugby ball (diameter: 0.9mm, height: 1.3mm). The egg surface is ribbed with ridges running longitudinally. The micropyle sits atop.

A mating pair of Common Tiger.

An egg of the Common Tiger, height: 1.3mm.

The egg takes about 3 days to hatch. The young caterpillar emerges by eating away part of the egg shell. The rest of the egg shell becomes the first meal for the newly hatched, which has a length of about 2.6mm. Its whitish body has a fair number of short, black setae. The large head capsule is black in color and there is a small black patch at the posterior end. A pair of short sub-dorsal protuberances can be found on each of the following four segments: 1st and 2nd thoracic segments, 2nd and 8th abdominal segments. Of these, the prothoracic pair is black in color and the remaining pairs greyish. The thoracic legs are black in color.

Two views of a newly hatched caterpillar, eating its egg shelf, length: 2.6mm.

Once the newly hatched moves on to feed on leaf lamina over the next few hours, its body starts to take on a green undertone. The growth is rather rapid with the body length doubling to about 4.8mm next day, and after just 1.5 days from hatching, it moults to the 2nd instar. Towards the second half of the 1st instar, the last three pairs of protuberances turn reddish brown and pairs of oval-shaped yellow spots, flanked by smaller reddish brown spots, appear on the dorsum from the 2nd thoracic segment to the 8th abdominal segment.

Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar, length: 4.2mm.

Two views of a late 1st instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length:4.8mm.

The body of the 2nd instar caterpillar is whitish in ground color. One obvious change is the lengthening of those black protuberances on the 2nd thoracic segment, 2nd and 8th abdominal segments. The pair of protuberances on the 1st thoracic segment remains subdued in size. A yellow band, interrupted by reddish brown spots, runs sub-spiracularly. The dorsal pairs of yellow spots are flanked by dark reddish brown spots which extend laterally to the subspiracular yellow band. The black head capsule now has a triangular white patch on the frons and two white arches. This instar lasts about 1 day with the body length reaching 7.6-8mm before the moult to the 3rd instar.

Two views of a newly moulted 2nd instar caterpillar.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, length: 7mm.

Two views of a late 2nd instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 7.6mm.

The 3rd instar caterpillar is similar in appearance to the 2nd instar caterpillar, One obvious change is in the three pairs of processes which are proportionately longer. This instar takes about 1.5 days to complete with body length reaching about 12mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, newly moulted, length: 7.5mm

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, length: 10.4mm.

Two views of a late 3rd instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 11.6mm.

Retaining very much the same body features from the previous instar, the 4th instar caterpillar distinguishes itself in having proportionately longer processes, with the mesothoracic pair the longest and having a strong tendency to flex forward. The base of the first two pairs of processes exhibits a hint of red at this stage. This instar lasts about 1.5 days with the body length reaching about 22mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 13.5mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, length: 20.8mm.

Two views of a late 4th instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 21.8mmmm.

The 5th and final instar caterpillar appears similar to the previous two instars except that all six processes now have a prominent crimson coloration at the basal portion. The sub-spiracular yellow band is broader and more prominent than in the earlier instars.

Two views of a newly moulted 5th instar caterpillar.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, length: 34mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 38.5mm.

The 5th instar lasts about 2.5 days, and the body length reaches up to 39-41mm. On the last day, the caterpillar ceases feeding, and its body becomes shortened and decolorized. It wanders around in search of a pupation site. Typically it comes to a halt at a spot on the underside of a leaf, where the caterpillar spins a silk pad from which it soon hangs vertically to take on the pre-pupatory pose.

A pre-pupatory larva of the Common Tiger.

Pupation takes place about 0.5 days after the caterpillar assumes the hanging posture. The barrel-shaped pupa suspends itself from the silk pad with no supporting silk girdle. The greenish pupa has a median transverse series of connected silvery spots and a series of black dashes at the lower boundary of this transverse band. Length of pupa: 19-21mm.

Three views of a pupa of the Common Tiger.

Three views of a mature pupa of the Common Tiger.

After about 5 days of development, the pupal skin turns translucent as the development within the pupal case comes to an end. The prominent white spots and orange patches on the forewing upperside also become discernible. The following day, the adult butterfly emerges from the pupal case.

The eclosion event of a Common Tiger butterfly.

A newly eclosed Common Tiger clinging onto its pupal case.

References:

[C&P4] The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, Malayan Nature Society, 1992.

Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 2nd Edition, 2012

A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore, Khew S.K., Ink On Paper Communications, 2nd Edition, 2015.

Text by Horace Tan, Photos by James Chia, Bob Cheong, Mark wong, Anthony Wong, Simon Sng, Sunny Chir and Horace Tan

Singapore's Long-Tailed Hairstreaks
The Magnificent Seven - Part 1

In the 2nd Edition of the Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore (2015), the taxonomic classification of the Lycaenidae family has been updated to be consistent with more recent and contemporary literature on this family of butterflies. This group comprises many small but beautiful butterflies that are often coloured a range of iridescent greens, blues and purples. Many are attractively coloured in bright hues whilst others possess tails.

The Lycaenidae in Singapore are represented by six sub-families. These are Curetinae (the Sunbeams), Poritiinae (the Gems), Miletinae (the Harvesters), Aphnaeinae (the Silverlines), Polyommatinae (the Blues) and Theclinae (the Hairstreaks). A common feature of the latter three sub-families is that their wings are "designed" to fool predators into attacking the wrong side of the butterflies. Often sporting tails and adorned with false "eyes" on their hindwings, many species of this sub-families display what is often referred to as "decoy protective strategy".

In particular, the Theclinae, collectively referred to as Hairstreaks, display this decoy characteristic in the majority of the species in the sub-family. In some cases, the decoy is carried to the extreme where the species feature extremely long tails (>10mm long) that appear to be alive as they twirl in the breeze when the butterfly is perched to rest. This blog article (in two parts) introduces our readers to 7 of these long-tailed Hairstreaks found in Singapore.

I have always been amused when our butterfly-crazy friends from Hong Kong visit Singapore, and seeing how happy they were, whenever they encounter one of our long-tailed hairstreaks. Then I realised that amongst the Lycaenidae in Hong Kong, there are no extant long-tailed species there! Perhaps that is why our Hong Kong friends get rather excited when they see these species here in Singapore. We do hope our HK friends would visit us more often to enjoy our butterflies here.

Part 1 of this blog article showcases 3 of these spectacular long-tailed hairstreaks that can be found in Singapore.

The Branded Imperial (Eooxylides tharis distanti)

A pair of Branded Imperials perched on a young shoot of its caterpillar host plant. Note the eggs.

A forest-dependent species, the Branded Imperial does not often venture out into urban parks and gardens. They are usually found along the fringes of our forested nature reserves where its preferred caterpillar host plant, Smilax bracteata, a non-native invasive "weed" that is now common in our forests. The signature reddish-orange underside with the unmarked forewing with the hindwing featuring black and white tornal area easily distinguishes the Branded Imperial from the other species in the sub-family.

A Branded Imperial feeding on the secretions of its host plant, Smilax bracteata

The hindwing sports three tails - one long tail at vein 2 of the hindwing and two shorter tails at veins 1a and 3. The upperside is black, with a similar-patterned hindwing tornal area like its underside. The Branded Imperial can be considered common, and is often spotted in shaded areas in our forests. In some areas where they can be found regularly, there are often several individuals seen together.

The butterfly has a "hopping" flight as they flit amongst the shrubbery. They often stop to rest with their wings folded upright. Occasionally, several individuals can be seen together as they feed on the secretions on the young shoots of their host plant. The life history of the Branded Imperial has been recorded and the full documentation can be found here.

The Common Imperial (Cheritra freja friggia)

A Common Imperial puddling at a sandy streambank

The next long-tailed species featured has a wider distribution than the Branded Imperial. The Common Imperial, although a moderately rare species, is more often encountered in urban parks and gardens than within the nature reserves. It can be skittish, and prefers to stay at higher levels at the treetops unless it comes down to feed or lay eggs.

The tails of the Common Imperial are generally longer than those of the Branded Imperial, regularly exceeding 10mm when measured from the tornal area of the hindwing. The male Common Imperial is a deep midnight blue above, whilst the female is brown. The underside is mainly white, with the apical area of the forewing shaded a pale orange. The tornal spots on the hindwing are overlaid with metallic blue-green scaling.

Similar to the Branded Imperial, this species has three tails originating from veins 1a, 2 and 3 of the hindwing, of which the longest is at vein 2. The long, thick white tails have a dark line in the middle, and the ends are often soft and "actively" twirling in the breeze when the butterfly stops to rest. The caterpillar of the Common Imperial feeds on a number of host plants, and the full life history can be found here.

The Fluffy Tit (Zeltus amasa maximinianus)

The third of the long-tailed species featured in this week's article is the moderately common Fluffy Tit. It can be found in urban parks and gardens, as well as in our forested nature reserves. It is usually encountered singly, flitting amongst the shrubbery with its long tails prominently seen trailing behind it as it flies rapidly from leaf to leaf.

A puddling Fluffy Tit

The male of this species is black above, with the basal area of the forewing and a large part of the hindwing coloured a pale azure blue. The female is a dull brown above. The underside is predominantly white, with dark orange areas at the apical areas of both the fore- and hindwings. The hindwing has a prominent black spot at space 2. The hindwing features only two pairs of tails, originating from veins 1b and 2. The longer tail at vein 2 is often twirled in a spiral and appear "softer" throughout its length when compared with the other two species featured in this article.

Male Fluffy Tits are regularly encountered puddling at damp footpaths and stream banks in the nature reserves. It is also sometimes seen feeding on bird droppings. The species is also regularly photographed, feeding on the flowers of the Bandicoot Berry (Leea indica). The life history of the Fluffy Tit has also been recorded and the details can be found here.

And so we are acquainted with 3 of these long-tailed hairstreaks that call Singapore home. In the 2nd part, we will meet 4 other long-tailed species, and one of which features the longest tails amongst all the species in the Theclinae sub-family in Singapore.

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Sunny Chir, Chng CK, Antonio Giudici, Goh LC, Khew SK, Loke PF, Bobby Mun and Anthony Wong

Butterflies' Larval Host Plants #7
The Yellow Cow Wood (Cratoxylum cochinchinense)

This 7th instalment of our Butterflies' Larval Host Plants series features Cratoxylum cochinchinense (Yellow Cow Wood), a species of the family Hypericaceae (St. John's-Wort Family). The species name "cochinchinense" has the Latin meaning "of Cochinchina" which refers to the region comprising the southern third of Vietnam.

Across Southeast Asia and Southern China, C. cochinchinense has been found to grow in multiple habitats including primary and secondary forests, grasslands and woodlands etc. In Singapore, it is more likely to see it being cultivated in parks and gardens as ornamental plants. Individual wild specimens can also be found in the Central Catchment Reserve and Bukit Timah Reserve, and a number of other locations. Various parts of the plant have found uses in different aspects of human lives. One example is in Traditional Chinese Medicine: The roots, bark, and twigs are used a medicine for treating cold and diarrhea.

Plant Biodata :
Family : Hypericaceae
Genus : Cratoxylum
Species : cochinchinense
Synonyms : Hypericum cochinchinense, Ancistrolobus ligustrinus, Cratoxylum biflorum, C. chinense , C. ligustrinum, C. petiolatum, C. polyanthum.
Country/Region of Origin : Southeast Asia, Southern China
English Common Name : Yellow Cow Wood
Other Local Names : Kayu Arang, Kemutong, Tree-Avens, 黃牛木
Larval Host for Butterfly Species: Eurema hecabe contubernalis (Common Grass Yellow), Lexias pardalis dirteana (Archduke), Phaedyma columella singa (Short Banded Sailor).

Left: A cultivated Yellow Cow Wood in the car park at Dairy Farm Nature Park. Right: A wild Yellow Cow Wood in the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. Note the distinctive orange-brown trunks.

Yellow Cow Wood is a deciduous plant occurring in either shrub or tree form, with the latter ranging from 1.5m to 18m tall, occasionally up to 33m tall. Some spines occur at the base of stem. The bark is smooth, grey-brown to orange-brown, and is a source of a brown dye. The trunk is hard and durable and is harvested for timber usage when the tree has grown to a suitable size.

Closer view of the orange-brown trunk of two Yellow Cow Wood tree.

The leaves are elliptic or lanceolate in shape, 3-10cm in length and 1-4 cm in width. They are oppositely arranged. Young leaves are initially reddish, then turning reddish brown, yellow green to grayish green when fully developed. In some places, young shoots are eaten as raw vegetable, and young leaves are used as a substitute for tea.

Drooping branches of Yellow Cow Wood showing leaves in various stage of development.

A closer view of a leaf branch of Yellow Cow Wood showing leaves in various stage of development.

The opposite arrangement of leaves on a branch.

A reddish young leaf.

A yellowish-green maturing leaf.

A green mature leaf.

Flowers of the Yellow Cow Wood are small, 1-1.5cm in diameter, dark red to pink, and occur in axillary or terminal cymes. These bisexual flowers attract insects such as bees and hoverflies to act as pollinators in the reproduction process.

Flower buds and a flower of the Yellow Cow Wood.

Cymes bearing blooming flowers of the Yellow Cow Wood, with a visitor.

A closer view of flowers of the Yellow Cow Wood.

Fruits are small, up to 1.2cm long. The young fruits are green in colour and are used as a spice for cooking. Mature fruits are dark brown. When ripened, the fruit opens up to reveal three seed-bearing loculi. Each loculus contains 5-8 seeds which are unilaterally winged.

Young fruits of the Yellow Cow Wood.

Mature fruits of the Yellow Cow WOod.

Close-up view of ripened fruits of the Yellow Cow Wood, with stack of seeds indicated.

Seeds of the Yellow Cow Wood.

Close-up views of a seed of the Yellow Cow Wood.

In Singapore, the Yellow Cow Wood also serves as the larval host plant for three butterfly species: Common Grass Yellow, Archduke and Short Banded Sailor. The first is a Pierid and the last two are Limenitid.

A Common Grass Yellow.

An Archduke (male).

A Short Banded Sailor.

Eggs of the Common Grass Yellow are laid on the reddish young leaves of the Yellow Cow Wood, whereas those of Archduke are laid on leaf surface (both upper and undersides) of both young and mature leaves. In contrast, eggs of the Short Banded Sailor are typically laid at the tip of a mature leaf.

A female Common Grass Yellow laying an egg on a young leaf of the Yellow Cow Wood.

An egg of the Common Grass Yellow found on a young leaf of the Yellow Cow Wood.

A female Archduke laying an egg on the underside of a leaf of the Yellow Cow Wood.

A cluster of six eggs of the Archduke found on the upperside of a young leaf of the Yellow Cow Wood.

Caterpillars of the Common Grass Yellow feed onleaves on young shoots of the Yellow Cow Wood whereas those of the Archduke and Short Banded Sailor feed on the developing and mature leaves. The early instar caterpillars of the Short Banded Sailor has the habit of feeding from the leaf tip, cutting and hanging leaf fragments as they munch on.

A young caterpillar of the Short Banded Sailor resting at the leaf tip. Hanging leaf fragments can be seen further up.

A final instar caterpillar of the Short Banded Sailor.

Two views of a final instar caterpillar of the Common Grass Yellow.

A later instar caterpillar of the Archduke on a mature leaf of the Yellow Cow Wood.

Caterpillars of the Common Grass Yellow and the Short Banded Sailor typically pupate on the underside of a stem, whereas those of the Archduke do so on the underside of a leaf.

Two views of a pupa of the Common Grass Yellow on the underside of a stem.

Three views of a pupa of the Short Banded Sailor.

A pupa of the Archduke on the midrib on the underside of a leaf.

References:

The Concise Flora of Singapore : Hsuan Keng Singapore University Press, 1990.

Asianplant.net - Cratoxylum cochinchinense.

Nature Loves You - Cratoxylum cochinchinense.

Useful Tropical Plants - Cratoxylum cochinchinense.

Wikipedia - Cratoxylum cochinchinense.

Go Botany - Hyperiaceae.

Text and Photos by Horace Tan.

Singapore's Long-Tailed Hairstreaks
The Magnificent Seven - Part 2

A male Plane feeding on the flower of the Bandicoot Berry (Leea indica)

This weekend's blog article continues with Part 2 of Singapore's Long-Tailed Hairstreaks. In Part 1, we were introduced to three of the seven long-tailed Theclinae of Singapore - the Branded Imperial, the Common Imperial and the Fluffy Tit. In this second and final part, we feature the remaining four butterflies which possess spectacular long tails, which are, on average, more than 10mm in length.

A female Grand Imperial showing off its long tails

We hope that in featuring these long-tailed beauties, we will whet the appetites of our Hong Kong butterfly-watching friends to visit Singapore more often to look for these species to add to their photographic collections of butterflies around the world! However, some of these species are rare and inhabit Singapore's forested nature reserves. They are rarely seen in urban parks and gardens, and prefer the sanctuary of our shaded forests, hence a butterfly-watcher will have to be quite determined to look for them in their preferred habitats.

A male Green Imperial feeding on the inflorescence of a Yellow Palm

The first of the long-tailed species featured in Part 2, is the Plane (Bindahara phocides phocides). This male of this rare forest beauty is the only species amongst the seven featured species found in Singapore, to sport non-white tails.

The Plane (Bindahara phocides phocides)

A male Plane perches on a leaf

The Plane was re-discovered some time in the late 1990's and reinstated to the Singapore Butterfly Checklist. Typically a forest-dwelling butterfly, the Plane is distinctly sexually dimorphic in that the male and female of the species appear so different as to suggest that they are two completely different species. In terms of sightings, males outnumber female sightings by at least 20:1. Both sexes are rare and appear to be seasonal.

The male sports a long yellow tail at vein 2 of the hindwing. The upperside is a deep black-brown with the apical area of the forewing marginally lighter. The hindwing tornal area is yellow, with large black spots. The female is a reddish brown above with large black spots at the whitened tornal area. The underside of the male is an ochreous buff with reddish-brown markings and stripes. The female is white with orange apical area and bands on the forewing.

The rarer female Plane feeding on a flower in the forest

Both sexes are usually spotted when feeding on the flowers of forest trees and shrubs. A favourite is the flower of the Bandicoot Berry (Leea indica). The caterpillar of the Plane is believed to feed on the fruits of Salacia sp. Observations of the species, particularly the males, are typically around mid-day on hot sunny days. On average, the tail of the male Plane measures about 20mm from the tornal origin to the tip of the tail.

The Green Imperial (Manto hypoleuca terana)

The remaining three long-tailed hairstreaks to be featured share a common English name of "Imperial". Indeed, when encountered in the forests, there is often something very "imperialistic" about these butterflies when they fly elegantly with their tails trailing behind them. The Green Imperial is usually spotted at the fringes of the nature reserves, usually feeding on flowering plants or, in the case of the female, fluttering around its caterpillar host plant.

Upperside shots of Green Imperial

The male of the Green Imperial is a shining bluish-green above with broad black apical area on the forewing. The underside is dark orange, and unmarked on the forewing. The tornal area of the hindwing has the usual black spots and a white tail originating from vein 2. The female is brownish-black above with the tornal area of the hindwing white. On the underside, the tornal area of the hindwing is whitened, unlike the male's largely orange hindwing. This species has the shortest tails amongst those featured here, usually averaging between 15-18mm.

Green Imperial - left : female, right : male

The species is fast-flying but sometimes stops to rest to sunbathe with its wings opened flat. There is a second short stubby tail at vein 3 of the hindwing. The Green Imperial has been successfully bred in Singapore, on the parasitic plant Macrosolen cochinchinensis and its complete life history is documented here.

A male Green Imperial

The Great Imperial (Jacoona anasuja anasuja)

A newly-eclosed female Great Imperial perching on a twig

The Great Imperial is another rare forest species that is likely to spend most of its time fluttering at treetop level. Both sexes occasionally descend to feed at flowering bushes. Females are more often observed than the males. They are usually skittish and difficult to approach without spooking them off to the treetops.

Upperside of a male Great Imperial

The male Great Imperial is a deep shining blue on the upperside, with a short oblique band running across the black apical border. The female is largely brown above with a white tornal area on the hindwing. The underside is a dirty orange with the forewing apex shaded darker. The white tail of the male is usually shorter and sword-like, whilst the female sports a much longer tail, that can measure up to 25mm.

A male Great Imperial with shorter and more rigid sword-like tails

The Great Imperial can often be misidentified as the closely related Grand Imperial, particularly the female of the species. The ID key below shows the distinguishing features of the two species to separate them. The life history of the Great Imperial has been fully recorded on Dendropthoe pentandra, which it shares with several other species, and another parasitic plant, Scurrula ferruginea.

The Grand Imperial (Neocheritra amrita amrita)

A typical behaviour of the Grand Imperial where it perches on the underside of a leaf to hide

The final species of the magnificent seven long-tailed hairstreaks is the Grand Imperial. Both sexes are usually larger than the preceding species, and may be considered the largest species of the long-tailed species found in Singapore. The Grand Imperial never fails to impress when it is encountered in the well-shaded forested areas in the nature reserves. With its long tails trailing elegantly as it flits around the shrubbery, it is indeed an awesome sight to behold!

The male Grand Imperial has a royal blue upperside with the apical areas of the forewing blackened. The female is dark brown above with a white tornal area on the hindwing. On the underside, the forewing and the costal half of the hindwing are brownish-orange with the rest of the hindwing a pure white. This species holds the distinction of having the longest tails amongst the seven long-tailed hairstreaks found in Singapore. A female individual in a reference collection had tails that measured a whopping 30mm from the tornal area to the tip of the tail!

The long tails of the Grand Imperial can reach a length of up to 30mm!

The life history of the Grand Imperial was recently recorded in Singapore in early 2015 on a yet-to-be-confirmed host plant, believed to be also a parasitic plant. Interestingly, the species is common on the offshore island of Pulau Tekong, a military training island, where, on one survey, up to six individuals had been spotted together at a single location. From survey records on Pulau Tekong, both sexes are equally spotted.

A Grand Imperial from southern Thailand

As we conclude this two-part series on Singapore's Long-Tailed Hairstreaks, we hope that you have enjoyed the beauty of these elegant butterflies enough to explore our forested nature reserves to look for them. No photo can do justice to the beauty of these butterflies in the wild, and we hope that you can experience that exhilarating thrill of encountering them in real life!

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Jerome Chua, Antonio Giudici, Khew SK, Bobby Mun, Horace Tan, and Benjamin Yam

Life History of the Malayan Swift (Caltoris malaya)

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Caltoris Swinhoe, 1893
Species: malaya Evans, 1928
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 38-42mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plant:Bambusa heterostachya (Poaceae; common name: Malay Dwarf Bamboo).

A male Malayan Swift.

A female Malayan Swift.

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

On the upperside, the wings are dark brown with hyaline spots in spaces 2,3 and 4, subapical spots in spaces 6 and 7 and no cell spots in the forewing. Compared to the other Caltoris sp., the male is almost always missing a spot in space 1b. On the underside, the wings are dark ferruginous in the male, and ochreous in the female.

A female Malayan Swift.

A male Malayan Swift.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

The Malayan Swift is moderately rare in Singapore. Sightings of adults typically occur in forested nature reserves and wastelands where its host plant is growing. Being similar looking to other Caltoris spp. in the underside, it is usually difficult to confirm its id in the field unless a glimpse of its upperside is possible.

A male Malayan Swift with a partial view of its upperside, showing the absence of cell spots in the forewing.

Early Stages:

The Malayan Swift has been bred on a number of bamboo species, with the id of one established: Bambusa heterostachya (Malay Dwarf Bamboo). The caterpillars feed on leaves of the host plants, and live in shelters formed by joining edges of a bamboo leaf together.

Local host plant:Bambusa heterostachya .

The eggs are laid singly on the surface of a leaf of the host plant. Each dome-shaped egg is orangy-red with white fuzzy patches on the lower half. The micropylar sits atop. A number of very fine and obscure ridges running longitudinally from the base. The basal diameter is about 1.2-1.3mm.

Two views of an egg of the Malayan Swift.

Left: maturing egg; Right: mature egg with the young caterpillar nibbling away the egg shell.

It takes about 4.5-5 days for the egg to hatch. The young caterpillar eats just enough of the shell to emerge, and has a length of about 2.7mm. Its bright orange body is cylindrical in shape and has a tuff of few moderately long setae at the posterior end. The head capsule is black. A black collar mark can be found the dorsum of the prothorax. The newly hatched nibbles away almost all the remnant egg shell before proceeding to construct its first leaf shelter at the leaf tip.

A newly hatched caterpillar of the Malayan Swift, almost done with the remnant egg shell.

The body turns yellowish green after the caterpillar has a few sessions of the leaf diet. By the time the caterpillar lies dormant for its moult to the 2nd instar, its length has reached 4.5mm. The 1st instar takes a total of 4-5 days to complete.

Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar, length:3.6mm.

Two views of a late 1st instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length:4.5mm.

The 2nd instar caterpillar still has a yellowish green body, and the head capsule is either dark reddish brown or black. The black collar mark on the prothorax is no longer visible. This instar lasts about 4-5 days with the body length reaching about 6.5-7mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 4.5mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, length: 5.8mm.

The 3nd instar caterpillar still has a black or dark reddish brown head capsule but its body is now much paler yellowish green compared to the 2nd instar. This instar lasts a total of 5-6 days with the body length reaching about 12-13mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 6.8mm.

3rd instar caterpillar. Top: late in this stage, legnth: 12mm. Bottom: dormant prior to its moult, length: 11mm.

The 4th instar caterpillar has a whitish body base colour with a very light yellowish green tone. The head capsule is either black or reddish brown. This penultimate instar lasts 6-7 days with the body length reaching up to 20-21mm.

A 4th instar caterpillar with reddish brown head capsule, early in this stage, length: 11.5mm.

A 4th instar caterpillar with black head capsule, early in this stage, length: 12mm.

Top: late 4th instar caterpillar, length: 21mm. Bottom: newly moulted 5th instar caterpillar, length: 22mm.

The 5th instar caterpillar has a pale yellowish green body. In a drastic change, its head capsule is now pale reddish brown in ground colour but dark reddish brown along the periphery and various sulci (groove/furrow). Two dark reddish brown stripes rise from the adfrontal area, giving a very vague impression of the chinese character 山. The anal plate is unmarked as in the all previous instars. This final instar takes about 9-10 days to complete with the body length reaching 40-41mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, length: 25mm.

5th instar caterpillars, length: 41mm. Top: a female caterpillar with a darker-coloured head. Bottom: a male caterpillar with a paler-coloured head.

Towards the end of 5th instar, the body of the caterpillar shortens in length and its colour assumes a uniform shade of pale lime green. It seeks out the underside of a leaf blade and forms a shallow but half-open shelter with silk threads at both ends. The body excretes a moderate amount of white waxy material at this stage. Within the shelter, a silk girdle and a transverse silk band are then spun. Once the caterpillar attaches its claspers to the silk pad, it enters the dormant prepupatory phase which lasts about one day.

A pre-pupa of the Malayan Swift.

After about 1 day of the dormant pre-pupa stage, the pupation event takes place. The pupa secures itself with the silk girdle across its thorax and with its cremaster attached to the transverse silk band. It has a short thorax, a rather long abdomen, a moderately long and pointed rostrum. The body is uniformly yellowish green with no markings. Length of pupae: 25-31mm.

Two views of a pupa of a female Malayan Swift, length: 31mm.

After 7 days, the pupa becomes mostly black in color in the wing pads and in the body segments. Eclosion takes place the next day.

Two views of a mature pupa of the Malayan Swift.

References:

[C&P4] The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, Malayan Nature Society, 1992.

Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 2nd Edition, 2012.

A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore, Khew S.K., Ink On Paper Communications, 2nd Edition, 2015.

Text and Photos by Horace Tan.

Butterfly of the Month - March 2016
The Ambon Onyx (Horaga syrinx maenala)

Even as the wet months of the year gave way to a much warmer weather, the prospects of facing the Indonesian-generated haze begins to threaten the fresh air that we take for granted. Already, there are sporadic reports of fires burning out of control in Indonesia and we brace ourselves again for the dreaded haze in the not-too-near future. The hotter weather in the month of March is expected to hit 34deg C according to the National Environment Agency's fortnight forecast, and this is certainly not going to be helpful as far as the haze is concerned.

It has also been disheartening to continue to hear butterfly watchers from Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore lamenting that the butterfly count in their respective favourite butterfly hunting locations is very low. Is it due to the ever-changing weather patterns over the past year, climate change, or is this something that will be a permanent feature in the coming year? Even if this is the case, where have all the butterflies gone? This is something that we should continue to monitor and share our observations over the various social media platforms.

Global news has been rather unexciting, other than repeated reports of a slowdown across most economies around the world. As a pall of gloom descends on Singapore, with constant reminders of an imminent recession, many firms are reported to be cutting headcount, withholding increments and taking steps to restructure and right-sizing their organisations to mitigate the effects of a downturn.

On a personal front, I finally found the time to carry out my cataract surgery. I had been putting it off for some time already, but my deteriorating eyesight was preventing me from enjoying my hobby of watching and photographing my beloved butterflies. So, off I went "under the knife" and had my artificial intra-ocular implants put in to replace my natural v1.0 lenses. Modern cataract surgery, usually referred to as phaco-emulsification, is a simple day surgery procedure. After a month of healing, I'm quite ready to head out again to look for our winged jewels in Singapore!

Our feature butterfly for March 2016 is the Ambon Onyx (Horaga syrinx maenala). Currently the only representative of the genus in Singapore, it is highly likely that another species, of which there have been evidence of, also exists here. It is a matter of time before an actual voucher specimen is collected to validate the other species.

The Ambon Onyx is fairly common in Singapore, and is observed with regularity at urban hill parks and gardens. It is sometimes found in the forested nature reserves as well. The butterfly is small, with a forewing length of 13-16mm (wingspan of about 22-26mm). It is skittish and often flies at treetop level on hot sunny days. At certain hours of the day, it can be spotted perched with its wings opened to sunbathe.

The butterfly has a rapid flight and often observed engaged in "dogfights" with other individuals of the same species. It returns repeatedly to a few favourite perches to settle with its wings folded upright, waiting for the next opportunity to "attack" another individual flying past.

The Ambon Onyx is bright blue on its upperside, with a broad black border on the forewing. It features a small white discal spot on the forewing, often crossed by dark dusted veins. Females are larger in size, with a correspondingly bigger white discal spot on the forewing. Both sexes have three pairs of filamentous white-tipped tails originating from veins 1b, 2 and 3 on the hindwing.

The underside is a buff brown with a irregular white macular band stretching across both wings. The tornal area of the hindwing features three large black eyespots edged with light blue iridescent scales. The legs are black and white banded and all three pairs of legs are fully developed.

The caterpillars of the Ambon Onyx have been found to feed on the flowers and buds of Ixora javanica and the young shoots of Citrus microcarpa. It is believed that there are more alternative host plants for this species as well.

Text by Khew SK : Photos by Sunny Chir, Chng CK, Khew SK, Koh CH, Loke PF, Nelson Ong and Anthony Wong.

Butterflies' Larval Host Plants #8
The Yellow Saraca (Saraca thaipingensis)

This 8th instalment of our Butterflies' Larval Host Plants series features Saraca thaipingensis (Yellow Saraca), a species of the family Fabaceae (Bean Family) which has members taking on a variety of growth forms (tree, shrub, herb, vine, liana). The Yellow Saraca is a perennial member of this family which assumes the tree form. The species name "thaipingensis" has the meaning "of or from Taiping, Malaysia".

Yellow Saraca is native to the Southeast Asia region, but it is also widely cultivated in a number of tropical and sub-tropical countries for its attractive yellow inflorescence and drooping pink/purple young leaves. In Singapore, the Yellow Saraca can be found in many parks and gardens as ornamental trees. Besides its obvious ornamental purpose, Yellow Saraca has potential medicinal uses as extracts of its flowers, leaves and twigs have been found to have antimicrobial and antioxidant properties in recent studies.

Plant Biodata :
Family : Fabaceae
Genus : Saraca
Species : thaipingensis
Synonyms : S. cauliflora, S. declinata, Jonesia declinata.
Country/Region of Origin : Southeast Asia
English Common Name : Yellow Saraca, Yellow Asoka,
Other Local Names : Gapis Golak, Talan, Bunga Asoka, Gapis, Gapis Batan, Gapis Batang, 黄花无忧树
Larval Host for Butterfly Species: Hypolycaena erylus teatus (Common Tit), Jamides caeruleus caeruleus (Sky Blue), Jamides alecto ageladas (Metallic Caerulean), Jamides elpis pseudelpis (Glistening Caerulean), Semanga superba deliciosa, Drupadia ravindra moorei (Common Posy), Rapala pheretima sequeira (Copper Flash), Anthene emolus goberus (Ciliate Blue).

A Yellow Saraca tree next to the Symphony Lake in the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Yellow Saraca is a medium-sized, evergreen tree which can grow up to about 8m in height. The fully grown tree has a wide spreading crown.

A flowering Yellow Saraca tree in the Mount Faber Park.

Another Yellow Saraca tree in the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Leaves of the Yellow Saraca are simple pinnate (with no terminal leaflet) with 4 to 8 pairs of opposite leaflets, each of which is lanceolate in shape and can grow up to 8-25cm long. Young leaves occurs in drooping form and are initially dark reddish brown. As it grows larger, the tender leaflets turns pink or purple colour, before finally turning green and stiffen.

Young leaves of the Yellow Saraca in its early stage of development.

Drooping young leaves of the Yellow Saraca in cream/pink coloration.

A wide-field view of both young and mature leaves of the Yellow Saraca.

A Yellow Saraca tree in Singapore Botanic Gardens with attractive pink/purple young leaves.

Mature leaves of the Yellow Saraca.

Flowers of the Yellow Saraca occur in dense clusters each of which is up to 40cm broad and arises from trunk, stems or branches. Each flower is small, about 2cm in diameter, initially pale yellow, turning deep yellow with a crimson eye-spot. Most flowers are functionally male with the rest bisexual. Flowers of the Yellow Saraca are mildly fragrant. It is interesting to note that each flower bears no petals but 4 sepals.

Clusters of flower buds of the Yellow Saraca arising from a branch.

Closer view of a cluster of flower buds of the Yellow Saraca.

Closer view of a cluster of flowers of the Yellow Saraca.

Left: A functionally male flower; Right: A bisexual flower of the Yellow Saraca.

Each fruit is a thin and flat pod. When fully developed, it is purple and large, 20-45cm long and 4-8cm broad. When ripened, the fruit turns dark brown and splits into two halves, exposing the flat, black seeds.

Young pods of the Yellow Saraca in very early stage of development.

Fully developed pods of the Yellow Saraca.

Ripened pods of the Yellow Saraca.

When a Yellow Saraca tree is in bloom, it could attract many nectar-seeking visitors such as various species of butterflies, other insects and birds.

Butterflies visiting flowers of the Yellow Saraca.

Various insects found on flowers of the Yellow Saraca.

A nectar-seeking bird found among flower clusters of the Yellow Saraca.

In Singapore, the Yellow Saraca also serves as the larval host plant for eight butterfly species: Common Tit, Sky Blue, Metallic Caerulean, Glistening Caerulean, Semanga superba deliciosa, Common Posy, Copper Flash and Ciliate Blue. All are lycaenid.

Clockwise from upper left: Ciliate Blue, Common Tit, Semanga superba deliciosa, Common Posy.

Clockwise from upper left: Sky Blue, Glistening Caerulean, Copper Flash, Metallic Caerulean.

Eggs of these butterfly species are laid on flower parts or on the surface of young leaves or stem. In the case of the Ciliate Blue, the eggs are laid in a tight cluster while those of the other seven are laid singly.

A female Glistening Caerulean laying an egg in the flower cluster of the Yellow Saraca.

An egg of the Sky Blue laid on a flower sepal of the Yellow Saraca.

Caterpillars of the three Jamides species and Copper Flash feed on the flower parts of the Yellow Saraca, whilst those of the Common Tit, Common Posy, Semanga superba deliciosa and Ciliate Blue feed on young leaves of the Yellow Saraca. They possess the usual nectary organs which attract attending ants.

A caterpillar of the Glistening Caerulean on the flower part of the Yellow Saraca.

A caterpillar of the Sky Blue on the flower part of the Yellow Saraca.

A caterpillar of the Metallic Caerulean on the flower part of the Yellow Saraca.

A caterpillar of the Ciliate Blue being attended by a group of weaver ants.

A caterpillar of the Common Posy resting on a leaf of the Yellow Saraca.

A caterpillar of Semanga superba deliciosa on a leaf of the Yellow Saraca.

A caterpillar of the Copper Flash nibbling away on a flower of the Yellow Saraca.

Caterpillars of these lycaenid species pupate either on a leaf surface or in a leaf litter. In the case of the Common Posy, the pupation site is typically a spot on a stem or branch.

Two views of a pupa of the Ciliate Blue on a young leaf of the Yellow Saraca.

Two views of a pupa of the Metallic Caerulean on a leaf surface.

Two views of a pupa of the Common Posy on a stem.

With so much insect and bird activities observable in a blooming Yellow Saraca tree, it is always worthwhile to check out such a tree that you happen to chance upon in one of our many parks and gardens.

References:

The Concise Flora of Singapore : Hsuan Keng Singapore University Press, 1990.

Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum - Saraca thaipingensis.

Nature Loves You - Saraca thaipingensis.

Photomazza - Saraca thaipingensis.

Antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of Saraca thaipingensis, Prachayasittikul S et al, Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine. 2012; Supplement 2:S796-S799.

Text and Photos by Horace Tan.

Butterfly of the Month - April 2016
The Two Spotted Line Blue (Nacaduba biocellata)

All too soon, it's the fourth month of 2016 already! The weather in the northern hemisphere is rapidly warming up, as spring vegetation begins to emerge from the cold winter months. Over in Southeast Asia, temperatures appear to be warming up a tad faster than we would have preferred, with the mercury zooming past 38, 39 and 40ºC in Bangkok, Chiangmai, Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. In Japan, the Cherry Blossoms bloom heralding the start of the sakura or hanami time of the year.

Even in Singapore, visitors to the Flower Dome at the Gardens by the Bay queued up to partake in the visual treat of blooming Prunus sp. Cherry trees imported from various parts of the world. These trees were horticulturally "tricked" into flowering within the climate-controlled glass dome, creating Singapore's own sakura for visitors to enjoy.

Up north in Beijing, where I was attending a business conference, the weather was a crispy 13-16ºC in the daytime, dropping to a chilly 2-4ºC at night. Even so, the winds blew away the pollution and the air was clean and clear. The hotel where we had the conference at was about 100km away from the city centre, and the surrounding views were spectacular! Magnolia buds have started appearing on their leafless trees, all ready to bloom as springtime temperatures trigger renewed life, as it does year after year.

On the global front, the spectre of religious extremism and radicalisation continues with terrorist acts claiming innocent lives of women and children. Two recent suicide bombings in Brussels, Belgium and Lahore, Pakistan claimed the lives of over 100 people. Other than these high profile cases which are featured internationally, it is terrifying when one is informed about the number of less well-known terrorist attacks all over the world, all in the first 3 months of 2016 alone!

The construction industry in India was thrust into the limelight when a massive flyover collapsed in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) and killed more than two dozen people. The purported lack of inspections and quality of material used by the "blackmarked" contractor was cited as possible causes. This led me to think about how we architects and engineers often lament about the highly regulated construction industry in Singapore where the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) and many other agencies tend to "over-regulate". Perhaps we have to be thankful for that after all!

Workplace safety was in the limelight in Singapore, where two engineering technicians were killed when they were knocked down by a moving train whilst en route to check a track fault. This brings into question, the level of workplace safety procedures in such hazardous industries. In the engineering and construction industry, where foreign workers make up a higher proportion of the workforce, workplace health and safety is always a concern where 'one life lost is one life too many'.

Speaking of foreigners and immigrants, we feature a non-local butterfly species that was discovered some time back in 2004 - the Two Spotted Line Blue (Nacaduba biocellata). This immigrant species is a diminutive 16-22mm in wingspan and is unlikely to have made it all the way from Australia, its native home, to Singapore. The fact that its caterpillar host plants are also non-native invasives - the Black Wattle (Acacia auriculiformis) and the Silver Wattle (Acacia mangium) makes it curious as to how these "foreigners" got to Singapore.

Both the host plants are considered invasive "weeds" and often removed by parks managers due to their brittle trunks and branches and are susceptible to breaking and collapsing. Surely they could not have been imported by horticultural companies where the caterpillars and pupae of the butterfly may have stowed away on? If so, then how did the butterflies appear in Singapore?

The male Two Spotted Line Blue is lilac with dark blue basal area while the female is dull brown with varying degrees of blue in the basal area. Both sexes have two brown-black subtornal spots on the hindwing. Underside, both sexes are similarly marked. The underside is pale greyish-orange in base colour with a short band at cell-end, and a longer post-discal band, both of which are narrowly edged with brown and white. The hindwing features two black subtornal spots with a few iridescent green scales and ringed with pale yellow-brown.

The species is skittish and often flies erratically for long periods of time without resting. An interesting phenomenon about the Two Spotted Line Blue is that its appearance in Singapore is highly seasonal. It suddenly appears as a outbreak, where literally hundreds of individuals may be observed over a few days, fluttering around the vicinity of its host plant. And then it disappears for the rest of the year, with not a single individual seen until the next outbreak!

It is often mistaken for the more commonly found Tailless Line Blue (Prosotas dubiosa lumpura) which displays a similar behaviour and outbreak over the year. Until an individual stops to rest and shows its distinctive two tornal spots, the two different species are usually difficult to distinguish when it flight.

Sightings of the Two Spotted Line Blue have been quite regular over the years so as to conclude that this species has somehow been naturalised and considered a "permanent resident" in Singapore. Its caterpillar host plants, as mentioned earlier, grows easily and appears in undeveloped areas all over Singapore. The full life history has been documented and can be found on this blog here.

It is hoped that this species will continue to survive in Singapore, despite the mystery of how it immigrated to Singapore. Being seasonally common, it is also a mystery of nature how its caterpillars or pupa is able to 'hibernate' and appear again the next season. This species has not been recorded in Malaysia yet, and should be looked out for in Singapore's neighbouring state of Johor.

Text by Khew SK : Photos by James Chia, Sunny Chir, Khew SK, Koh CH, Horace Tan and Anthony Wong

Cross References on this Blog :

Life History of the Conjoined Swift (Pelopidas conjunctus conjunctus)

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Pelopidas Walker, 1870
Species: conjunctus Herrich-Schäffer, 1869
Sub-Species: conjunctus Herrich-Schäffer, 1869
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 42-45mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plant:Panicum maximum (Poaceae, common names: Guniea Grass).

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

On the upperside, the wings are dark brown. There are pale yellowish-white hyaline spots in spaces 2-4, 6-8 and two cell spots in the forewing. Both sexes also have an additional spot in space 1b of the forewing. On the underside, the wings are paler ochreous brown. The forewing has the same spots as per the upperside, and the hindwing has a cell spot and a series of post-discal spots in spaces 2 to 5.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

The Conjoined Swift is moderately rare in Singapore. Unrecorded and likely missed by early butterfly researchers, it was discovered recently and added to the Singapore checklist. The adults have been sighted at grassy wastelands and fringes of nature reserves. They fly with a swift, strong and darting flight.

Early Stages:

The Conjoined Swift has so far been bred on one grass species locally, Panicum maximum, a common grass species in grassy wastelands. Elsewhere, the Conjoined Swift's recorded host plants include Sugar Cane (Saccharum officinarum), Corn (Zea mays), Rice (Oryza sativa), Andropogon and Bambusa spp. The caterpillars feed on leaves of the host plant, and live in shelters formed by joining edges of the grass blade together.

Local host plant: Panicum maximum.

The eggs are laid singly on the upperside of a grass blade of the host plant. Each dome-shaped egg is whitish with a basal diameter of about 1.4mm.

Two views of an egg of the Conjoined Swift.

A mature egg of the Conjoined Swift, with the head capsule visible through hole in the egg shell.

It takes about 4 days for the egg to hatch. The young caterpillar eats just enough of the shell to emerge, and has a length of about 3.2mm. Its cylindrical body is pale cream-yellow with a tuff of moderately long setae at the posterior end. The head capsule is black and has a black collar mark on the prothorax. The newly hatched nibbles away most of the egg shell remnant before proceeding to construct its first leaf shelter.

The newly hatched caterpillar in its first leaf shelter.

The body turns yellowish green after the caterpillar starts feeding on the grass blade near its shelter. By the time the caterpillar lies dormant for its moult to the 2nd instar, its length has reached 5.5-6mm. The 1st instar takes about 4 days to complete.

Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar of the Conjoined Swift, length:5.5mm.

The 2nd instar caterpillar still has a yellowish green body, and the head capsule is still black. The black collar mark on the prothorax has faded away almost completely. Faint whitish doro-lateral and lateral bands are observable. This instar lasts about 4-5 days with the body length reaching about 8-9mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 5.5mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, length: 7mm.

The 3rd instar caterpillar resembles the 2nd instar caterpillar closely, except for the larger head and body size. This instar lasts about 3 days with the body length reaching about 12.5-13mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 8mm.

A 3rd instar caterpillar, length: 12mm.

The 4th instar caterpillar has a head capsule which is black but with two whitish U- or V-shaped bands, one on each side of the head. The body is whitish-yelow with a green undertone. This instar lasts about 3 days with the body length reaching up to 21mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 12.5mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 20mm.

The 5th instar caterpillar features a head capsule which is whitish in ground colour and has two large black spots on each side of the head. The periphery of the head is marked with a broad black band. The anal plate is unmarked as in the all previous instars. This penultimate instar takes about 5-6 days to complete with the body length reaching 33-34mm.

Two views of a newly moulted 5th instar caterpillar, length: 19.5mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 34mm.

The 6th and final instar caterpillar has a strongly whitish body which has numerous tiny dark spots carpeting the surface. Two sub-dorsal bands run lengthwise along the body length. Compared to the previous instar, the whitish area in the head capsule has now enlarged so much that almost the whole head capsule is white. The two black oval spots are now smaller, and the black bands lining the periphery are broken into short stripes/bands. This final instar takes about 7-8 days to complete with the body length reaching 50-51mm.

Two views of a 6th instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 31mm.

Two views of a 6th instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 50mm.

Towards the end of 5th instar, the body of the caterpillar shortens in length and body colour assumes a uniform shade of dull green. It seeks out a spot on a leaf blade where it constructs a shallow but half-open shelter with silk threads at both ends. The body excretes a moderate amount of white waxy material at this stage. Within the shelter, a silk girdle and a short transverse silk band are then spun. Once the caterpillar attaches its claspers to the transverse silk band, it enters the dormant prepupatory phase which lasts about one day.

A pre-pupa of the Conjoined Swift lying dormant in the pupation shelter.

The pupa secures itself with the silk girdle and with its cremaster attached to the transverse silk band. It has a short thorax, a rather long abdomen and a pointed rostrum. The body is dull green in the thorax and wing case but yellowish green in the abdomen. Narrow, whitish, sub-dorsal bands run lengthwise on the abdomen. Length of pupae: 37-38mm.

Two views of a pupa of the Conjoined Swift.

After 7 days, the pupa becomes mostly black in color in the wing pads and in the body segments. Eclosion takes place the next day.

Two views of a mature pupa of the Conjoined Swift.

A newly eclosed Conjoined Swift.

References:

[C&P4] The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, Malayan Nature Society, 1992.

Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 2nd Edition, 2012.

A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore, Khew S.K., Ink On Paper Communications, 2nd Edition, 2015.

Text by Horace Tan, Photos by James Chia, Anthony Wong, PF Loke, Frederick Ho, Khew SK and Horace Tan

Ubin Butterfly Survey 2016
Outward Bound Singapore - West Ubin

All aboard! ButterflyCircle and Seletar CC members at OBS Ubin

At the invitation of OBS to conduct a butterfly survey on their premises on the western sector of Pulau Ubin, ButterflyCircle members made a trip to the OBS Ubin campus this morning. Accompanied by the enthusiastic members of the Seletar Country Club Butterfly Garden, a total of 11 butterfly enthusiasts turned up at the Punggol Point Jetty on this hot and humid morning. The morning sky was clear blue with nice cloud formations.

Our ride from Punggol Point Jetty to OBS Ubin

We met our hospitable hosts from OBS, Mr Ng Thian Choon, Dy Director (Programmes and Partnerships) and Mr Bernard Teo, Snr Asst Director (Estates Services) at the Punggol OBS office and headed for the Punggol Point Jetty. Transport to OBS Ubin was via private ferry owned by OBS. The trip across the channel of water took much shorter than the typical trip from Changi Ferry Terminal to Pulau Ubin via the commercial bumboats.

Our route to OBS Ubin. Note the newly opened Coney Island

Along the way, we could see the newly opened Coney Island. Coincidentally, there was a special run event on the island this morning. Another OBS campus will be built on Coney Island in the near future, to cope with the increasing demand from educational institutions, and also enhancing the OBS programme in Singapore.

At OBS Ubin and a short briefing by Choon

We reached OBS Camp 1 via the newly-constructed jetty, and Choon briefed the group about the facilities at OBS, and where we will trek this morning for the butterfly survey. The group started off the transect heading west towards a promontory called Tanjung Tajam. Along the way, we reached an open area that suffered a bush fire some time in March 2014, wiping out about 3 Hectares of vegetation. Reforestation efforts are in progress, and we could see the newly planted areas slowly reclaiming the open area.

The Tanjung Tajam area which was destroyed by fire in 2014. Reforestation is in progress

Our first butterflies were up and about, and the first species recorded was the Sumatran Sunbeam (Curetis saronis sumatrana) at the Camp 1 premises. Along the transect westwards, we spotted quite a number of Knights flying around and perching on leaves just beyond our reach. It is noted that the Knight's caterpillar host plant, Ixora congesta were plentiful in the area. We saw a Spotted Black Crow, a strange-looking Delias which did not stop for us, and a couple of Common Tits dogfighting at high level. A Long Banded Silverline (Spindasis lohita senama) perched on the bushes nearby as we were exiting the Tanjung Tajam area.

The transect continued into shaded forest, where we spotted an Orange Awlet, and another caterpillar of the same species on its host plant. Strangely the caterpillar was not in its usual leaf shelter, and was instead on the top of a leaf (which is not a good sign!). The forest floor was dry, probably due to the hot season over the past week. Knights were aplenty and we spotted no fewer than a dozen of them - both males and females, all along the forest paths.

Choon taking a closer look at a friendly Common Tit

Heading to the next part of the trail towards the reservoir, we spotted a couple of Oakblues and a caterpillar of the Studded Sergeant (Athyma asura idita). Along the way, we saw two female Cruisers (Vindula dejone erotella) and a friendly male that stopped on our members before scooting off to the treetops. The sighting of the Cruisers was a surprise, because I do not recall having spotted this species on Ubin before.

An old rubber sheet machine

In the shady forest understory, we spotted two Malayan Plum Judy (Abisara saturata kausambioides) flitting amongst the undergrowth. A Malay Viscount was foraging in the undergrowth, and we also saw two male Horsfield's Barons fighting for territorial dominance. Along the trail skirting around Hill 31, several other fast flying Lycaenids which looked like Common Tits were zipping around at the treetops.

Birds aplenty too at OBS Ubin! A Buffy Fish Owl glares down at the trespassers

The OBS area is also a birder's paradise, and we saw/heard Magpie Robins, Purple Throated Sunbirds and a huge Buffy Fish Owl. Perhaps not being easily accessible to the general public, the biodiversity in the OBS premises is relatively undisturbed most of the time, and is able to thrive in that area.

Time to head back to Singapore island on a larger boat this time

We ended the walk at around 11:30am, and the weather was very hot and humid. After a quick freshening up, we headed to the jetty where the OBS boatman was already waiting for us in a larger boat this time. The western sector of Ubin where the OBS campus is, covers an area of about 9 Hectares. We only scouted about a third of the area, and were impressed with the butterfly diversity. We will certainly return for a more closer survey and hopefully find more species to add to the OBS checklist.

Text by Khew SK : Photos by ChngCK, Huang CJ, Khew SK, Loke PF, Or CK and Ria Tan.

Special thanks to Mr Ng Thian Choon and Mr Bernard Teo for facilitating this survey and showing us around OBS

Checklist of Butterflies spotted at OBS Ubin on 16 April 2016

Common Mormon (Papilio polytes romulus)
Spotted Black Crow (Euploea crameri bremeri)
Blue Glassy Tiger (Ideopsis vulgaris macrina)
Dark Glassy Tiger (Parantica agleoides agleoides)
Colour Sergeant (Athyma nefte subrata)
Studded Sergeant (Athyma asura idita) - caterpillar
Knight (Lebadea martha parkeri) (and some ssp malayana-looking individuals)
Malay Viscount (Tanaecia pelea pelea)
Cruiser (Vindula dejone erotella)
Horsfield's Baron (Tanaecia iapis puseda)
Malay Plum Judy (Abisara saturata kausambioides)
Sumatran Sunbeam (Curetis saronis sumatrana)
Common Tit (Hypolycaena erylus teatus)
Centaur Oakblue (Arhopala centaurus nakula)
(Arhopala amphimuta amphimuta)
Long Banded Silverline (Spindasis lohita senama)
Orange Awlet (Burara harisa consobrina)
Perak Lascar (Pantoporia paraka paraka)

The Rise and Fall of a Butterfly Garden
Alexandra Hospital Butterfly Trail

Entrance to the Alexandra Hospital Butterfly Trail in Apr 2016

It was a long while back in 2001 when the then-CEO of Alexandra Hospital, Liak Teng Lit mooted the idea of bringing back biodiversity into the grounds of the hospital. Fifteen years ago, when biophilic design was still relatively unknown, Liak and his team pioneered the use of greenery and nature to augment the process of healthcare rehabilitation and healing of patients at Alexandra Hospital. Lush greenery and biodiversity, the AH team opined, gave the hospital its cutting edge 'brand' amongst Singapore's restructured public sector hospitals.

Alexandra Hospital Butterfly Trail in 2008

It was also at that time when the planning and design of the new Khoo Teck Puat Hospital at Yishun was still in its early stages, and already, the signature biophilic design and building+greenery+biodiversity strategy was very much a part of the design concept.

Alexandra Hospital Butterfly Trail in 2008

The Butterfly Trail at Alexandra Hospital started at an open valley adjacent to Alexandra Road, and through which a narrow stormwater drain ran. Over the years, this green patch was nurtured with tender loving care by retired occupational therapist Rosalind Tan and her small team of 3 gardeners (who also tended to the entire 11Ha site on which Alexandra Hospital sat). Nectaring plants and caterpillar host plants were procured and cultivated at the site, and precast concrete panels added to create a walkway within the Butterfly Trail. A DIY irrigation system was even added on to keep the garden well-watered.

A total of 102 species of butterflies were recorded at AH Butterfly Trail in 2008

Up to 102 species were spotted at the AH Butterfly Trail when the checklist was last updated in Nov 2008. A credible list, considering AH's location in a relatively urban setting and flanked by two major roads. After the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital was completed and Liak and his team moved to their new premises in Yishun, the old Alexandra Hospital continued to be used as a holding hospital for other new hospitals which were being constructed. In a way, the Butterfly Trail was saved from the excavators of developers.

Over the years, however, the Butterfly Trail fell into neglect, where there was little interest by the new teams who took over the hospital. Understandably, the focus of the new team was on the successful operation of the hospital itself, and the lush greenery around the hospital grounds were tended to pragmatically, purely from the maintenance point of view. Nectaring plants like the Prickly Lantana (Lantana camara), Pagoda Flower, Indian Heliotrope and so on, were replaced or just left to die out, as these were probably considered high maintenance plants.

Alexandra Hospital Butterfly Trail in 2016

Host plants like the Weeping Willow (Salix babylonica) and Soursop (Annona muricata) disappeared, and the associated butterflies moved on to other locations. The varied habitats like the open sunny areas and flowering bushes became heavily shaded as the structure of the greenery evolved as the larger trees grew. Favoured locations where the butterflies used to be sighted, feeding on brightly coloured flowers gave way to heavily shaded low-light vegetation.

A Common Imperial - a species that was regularly sighted at AH Butterfly Trail in the past. No longer found at the trail today

In its heyday, the AH Butterfly Trail was a must-go-to location for macro and butterfly photographers. Indeed, many of the members of ButterflyCircle started our butterfly photography journey at the very accessible AH Butterfly Trail, and where we learned the names of the butterflies that we photographed. New friendships were forged, and new photographic skills shared and acquired at this trail. Amongst the photography community, it was not unusual to announce over the forums that a photography outing was being planned at a hospital!

Today, the AH Butterfly Trail is a shadow of its former glory, as far as butterfly diversity is concerned. The groups of photographers, regularly seen at the trail on weekends and even weekdays, vanished. Visitors to the trail dwindled and there were even comments online that there was nothing to shoot at the AH Butterfly Trail.

Vegetation at AH Butterfly Trail in 2016 - still lush and green, but where are the butterflies?

I visited the AH Butterfly Trail this morning, to try to understand the reasons behind the downfall of the trail, and to see if there are lessons to be learnt from it. As I drove into the compound of AH, pleasant memories of bygone days flooded my mind, as the familiar surroundings greeted me. After parking my car, and walking towards the trail, I noticed that the lush greenery remained intact. Despite a number of buildings being renovated, the garden areas were generally left untouched. The hospital itself is now under the charge of a new management team and a holding hospital for the new Sengkang General Hospital, currently under construction.

A much heavily-shaded AH Butterfly Trail in 2016

I reached the Butterfly Trail itself, and noted that some of the vistas and the plants were roughly in the places where I remembered them. The main sign, introducing visitors to the butterfly trail had been replaced with a new one, but the area appeared to be under heavier shade than before. Walking along the trail, I saw a total of 3 Common Grass Yellows fluttering amongst the shrubbery. A pair of dogfighting Common Palmflies, Painted Jezebel, Common Mormon, Chocolate Pansy and a Lesser Grass Blue were all that I observed over a period of about an hour and a half that I was there.

The old Aristolochia trellises are still covered with the host plants of the Common Birdwing and Common Rose. There were even two species of Aristolochia, A. acuminata and A. ringens growing at the trellises. The plants were pristine and there was no sign of any caterpillar activity whatsoever - the leaves were pristine and unmolested.

Although the skies were cloudy, occasional periods of sunshine bathed the trail. I was hoping to spot more species, but it was not to be. A total of about 10 individual butterflies; 6 species! What happened to the rich butterfly diversity that we used to enjoy? What has changed?

AH Butterfly Trail's nearby catchment which are connected via park connectors and tree canopy

In spite of AH Butterfly Trail's urban location in relatively built-up surroundings, it had several positive things going for it. These were :

The site's proximity to large biodiversity-rich catchment areas in the Southern Ridges like Kent Ridge Park, Telok Blangah Hills Park and Mount Faber Park. The lush tree-lined roads around the site provided good tree-top level connectivity to the further catchments including the Buona Vista area and even slightly further afield northwards to the Singapore Botanic Gardens and southwards to Labrador Park.
Adjacent to AH, is the old Malayan Railway track. Part of the Rail Corridor today, this very critical link cannot be underestimated, as it provides good biodiversity connectivity to areas along this green link much further up north, whilst the undisturbed vegetation along the Rail Corridor itself is a good catchment area for butterflies.
The mature trees and vegetation within the site itself, covering a total of about 11 Hectares, provided a self-sustaining critical mass for biodiversity sustainability.
The tender loving care and passion of Rosalind Tan and her community of helpers. It was well known that Rosalind bred a lot of caterpillars in her own home, and then brought the pupae and eclosed butterflies to the trail to release. She also made sure that there are sufficient plants to sustain different species of butterflies.

Over a decade ago, capitalising on these advantageous attributes of the site, Liak and his team planted the right butterfly-attracting plants and created a mini food haven that brought the butterflies to the AH Butterfly Trail from the well-connected catchments nearby. So why did the butterflies abandon the site in recent years? These are some of my observations :

In the early years, the tree canopy was more sparse and there were areas of high light levels that were conducive to the flowering plants blooming profusely at the Butterfly Trail. Today, the area is highly shaded and amongst the butterfly-attracting flowering plants that remain, only the Snakeweed is left. Even so, without strong sunshine, the amount of nectar that the flowers of the plants that remain may be unattractive to butterflies.
The lower light habitats tend to favour certain species of urban butterflies rather than the sun-loving species, therefore reducing the diversity of species that frequent the trail.
The spraying of pesticides in the vicinity of the Butterfly Trail. This is probably the last "straw that broke the camel's back" as far as the Butterfly Trail is concerned. Already suffering from habitat changes, lack of nectaring and host plants, the spraying of all sorts of pesticides is likely to have pushed the butterfly trail over the edge.
The lack of commitment, enthusiasm and interest amongst those in charge of the butterfly trail. Even though the maintenance of a butterfly trail is much lower than a manicured garden, there is still maintenance needed to replace defoliated plants and nectaring plants occasionally.

A worker spraying air-borne pesticides. Note the face and eye mask on the worker to protect him from the toxic chemicals.

Coincidentally, when I visited the trail this morning, I encountered two persons spraying the site with pesticides. The first was spraying some form of general pesticide around the Butterfly Trail. Whilst he did not spray within the trail itself, the amount of airborne pesticides may adversely affect the biodiversity in the area. The second man appeared to be carrying some form of Malathion-smelling chemical, as the odour was quite obvious when he walked past and squirted some liquid at the plants along the path.

Another worker spraying Malathion-like pesticide at the Alexandra Hospital grounds

I do not blame these contractors for the spraying of pesticides, as they were just doing their job as instructed. The management of the hospital also has a right to do so, as the priority for the hospital would be to heal sick patients. Garden pests like mosquitoes, ants and other critters would not be priorities in their core mission. If so, then they should not be wondering why the Butterfly Trail is largely devoid of butterflies.

The Plain Nawab was often seen, perched at high level at AH Butterfly Trail. No longer seen in recent years.

Was Liak the only one who was brave enough to take certain risks when promoting the biodiversity in the gardens around the hospital? Is general spraying of airborne pesticides the solution for eradicating the dreaded Aedes aegypti mosquito that carries the dengue fever virus? The jury is still out on this, and apparently, even some quarters in the NEA do not think so. The most effective method still, is to attack the mosquitoes' breeding grounds i.e. stagnant water.

Caterpillar of the Common Birdwing that was breeding at the Aristolochia acuminata host plants at AH. Today, the leaves of the host plants are uneaten.

Leadership and commitment from the community are still critical success factors in designing and sustaining a butterfly garden. One does not just "wish" that there will be butterflies and then expect them to appear on demand in an open garden.

A caterpillar of the Blue Glassy Tiger photographed at AH Butterfly Trail in the past. The host plants are no longer found at the trail today.

The future plans for the redevelopment of the AH healthcare campus is in the works. The Ministry of Health has called a tender for a masterplan and feasibility study on the longer-term use of the site. This will take a year or more to complete. From the initial scope of the study, the greenery where the existing Butterfly Trail sits is to be retained. This is good news. However, what remains to be seen is how the conservation of the biodiversity can co-exist with a more intensive redevelopment proposed on the site.

Will the AH Butterfly Trail regain its popularity with butterfly watchers in future?

Can the AH Butterfly Trail return to its former glory? The answer is, it depends. The critical success factors have not changed much. The interconnectivity between the catchment areas via the park connectors and green canopies are still there. The Rail Corridor, currently being developed, should continue to provide a conduit to the high biodiversity nature areas. What will make the difference, is the human interface, the leadership, enthusiasm and commitment of the people who want to see biodiversity thrive at Alexandra Hospital, or not.

The signature fountain at Alexandra Hospital

Text and Photos by Khew SK

Earlier Blog Article about Alexandra Hospital Butterfly Trail in 2008

Life History of the Spotted Judy

2015 - Looking Back...

Life History of the White Tipped Skipper

Butterfly of the Month - January 2016

Paedophilic behaviour in Butterflies?

Butterfly Photography at Our Local Parks - Seletar Country Club

Larval Host Plant for Butterflies: Crown Flower

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Butterfly of the Month - February 2016

Life History of the Common Tiger

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Larval Host Plant for Butterflies: Yellow Cow Wood

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Life History of the Malayan Swift

Butterfly of the Month - March 2016

Larval Host Plant for Butterflies: Yellow Saraca

Butterfly of the Month - April 2016

Life History of the Conjoined Swift

Ubin Field Survey 2016

The Rise & Fall of a Butterfly Garden