With the used of Butterfly Photo ID website ("skipper edition"), there's a new species of skipper being highlighted from old photo archive, it's also a species that not recorded by early author in Singapore - Potanthus ganda.
A male specimen was collected recently, after much scrutiny to the voucher specimen, it's now confirmed that the species is indeed a Potanthus ganda.
Butterfly Description:
Wingspan: 21 - 24 mm
A small species, looks very similar to the more common Lesser Dart (P. omaha).
The Ganda Dart differs from Lesser Dart in that the veins on the yellow band on hindwing above are not blacked. Upperside forewing spots in spaces 4 & 5 narrow separated from sub-apical spots. The species ascends the hills, and restricted to forested area.
An old photo of Potanthus ganda, previously ID as Potanthus omaha (Lesser Dart).
Quick ID key to identify Potanthus ganda:
Photo showing the underside of P. ganda
Photo showing the male genitalia of Potanthus ganda. Note the uncus ends in a very broad & shallow "V" shape. Small drawing on the bottom left show the illustration in C&P4 for this species of butterfly.
References:
- The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, Malayan Nature Society.
- Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth Ek-Amnuay, 1st Edition, 2006
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