A Butterfly Holiday in Hong Kong

A Butterfly Holiday in Hong Kong

Mark Wong's travelogue in the Fragrant Harbour

It started with my company announcing our annual R&R trip to Hong Kong this year. I decided to extend my trip to check out the butterfly fauna in Hong Kong and to observe species that I am not likely to encounter in Singapore. After a brief exchange of messages over Facebook with our friends from the Hong Kong Lepidopterists Society (HKLS), we made plans for outings to the popular butterfly watching locations. I was rather excited to catch up with bunch that we brought around Singapore as we have not seen each other in about a year.

On the arranged date, I headed straight to Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve, where I met Rachel, and some of the HLKS members who showed me around. Being awed by the beauty of the Lamproptera curius (White Dragontail), I was rather determined to get a decent shot of it.  Without a doubt, Fung Yuen is the place to go for L. curius as the host plant can be found in abundance at the park.  Every now and then, the L. curius can be observed fluttering, feeding and resting among the bushes.

The Heliophorus epicles (Purple Sapphire) was also on my wish list from Hong Kong.  It didn’t take long before Rachel spotted one very cooperative individual and I had an easy time to document it.

I was also brought to a less accessible area around Fung Yuen by the HKLS members, which provided more opportunities to spot and watch more butterflies.  Among the other butterflies shot at Fung Yuen are: Zemeros flegyas (Punchinello), Isoteinon lamprospilus (Shiney-spotted Bob), Polyura nepenthes (Shan Nawab) and Lethe confusa (Banded Tree Brown).

The day ended with Gigi picking Rachel and myself up from Fung Yuen and I headed for a quick shower and straight to dinner with the rest of the gang with whom we have acquainted ourselves quite well when they visited us in Singapore back in 2011, HKLS members: Ah Yin, Arex, Doctor Lee, Gigi, Manson, and Rachel.   We had a great time catching up and discussed the next locations to head to over the next few days.

Top image, from right to left: Doctor Lee Ping Chung, Arex Li, Mark Wong, Ah Yin, Manson Chan, Rachel Chan and Gigi Lai

The next morning, I dragged myself out of bed to have breakfast to make sure I had enough energy to last throughout the day.  I met Gigi at Fung Yuen, and headed to an elevated area behind Fung Yuen.  It drizzled a bit at the lower altitudes but it was pretty much clear at the top. There were many Papilios fluttering around to whet our appetite for what is about to come.  The scenic landscape of Hong Kong also made the hiking up and down the mountain very pleasurable. I had a great time butterfly watching and shooting the ones that were more cooperative.  We even had a good number of puddlers that were feeding on the damp soil from the slight drizzle earlier.

Before leaving, one of the gems of Hong Kong, Papilio paris (Paris Peacock) came down to puddle beside Gigi’s car.  It was an opportunity for the both of us to shoot this rather skittish butterfly.

We then headed to Wu Gau Tan Country Park after lunch.  The weather had cleared up with blue skies.  We were greeted by a Taraka hamada (Lesser Forest Blue) at the entrance.  It is a Lycaenidae whose caterpillars feed on aphids, quite similar to the Miletinaes here in Singapore.   Upon closer inspection, the more pristine specimens have furry legs as well.

Our other target at Wu Gau Tan Country Park is, Pithecops corvus (Forest Quaker).  Fortunately I manage to catch a glimpse of this wee beauty fluttering around high up at the canopy level.  Although I did not manage to get a shot, it was a good opportunity to observe its behaviour. Along the way, we have also many opportunities to shoot other butterflies.

We headed back to Fung Yuen to search for other butterflies as it was getting late and we wanted to make full use of the available sunlight left in the day.  While looking for the Awls and skippers basking in the last rays of the setting sun, we encountered a cooperative Melanitis phedima WSF (Dark Evening Brown) and Zemeros flegyas (Punchinello) to keep us company until it was time to head back for dinner.

Manson picked me up from my hotel and headed to Mong Kok to meet up with Arex and Ah Yin.  Shopping for electronics goods there was great, and unlike Singapore; it is Tax Free, making some of the deals pretty attractive.  Arex then brought us to a Dim Sum café for dinner.  The food was awesome in all ways possible.

The next day started with bad weather, as it rained quite heavily throughout the morning.  I met Ah Yin at Sha Tin station for breakfast and waited for the weather conditions to improve.  We decided to head to Fung Yuen as it is geographically located at the centre of all the country parks. We took the opportunity to shoot some butterflies that came out despite the rain.

We met up with James Young, the chairman of HKLS, and he brought us out for lunch.  He recommended that we head to Tai Po Kau Nature Reserve for more butterfly shooting.

Tai Po Kau is one of the oldest Nature Reserves in Hong Kong, and almost untouched for nearly a century.  There are host plants for the Lamproptera curius (White Dragontail) around, but perhaps due to our late timing and the rain, we did not manage to spot any.

The butterfly activity was notably good despite the bad weather.  We still saw quite a number of puddlers.  We were quite lucky to be able to shoot the Graphium doson (Common Jay) which is not that common in Hong Kong as well as Singapore.  They were puddling along the road below a man-made. Although the Common Jay is very skittish typical of the Graphiums, we still manage to nail a few good shots after persisting for a while. 

We also had a chance to shoot the Graphium cloanthus (Glassy Bluebottle), which according to Ah Yin, are also not very common in Hong Kong and are seasonal.  Picking a pristine one among the lot is quite a challenge as they are also rather skittish and do not stay still when puddling.  Once again after some persistence from the butterfly photographers, we manage to have some decent shots.

On my final day, I checked out of the hotel and met James Young, who he brought me to Sai Kung, a marine conservation area at the extreme east of Hong Kong.  On a clear day, one can see mainland China across the sea.  Sai Kung also boasts many spectacular landscape scenes.  The colour of the water from the dam is a deep blue with hints of green, surrounded by the mountainous landscape of Hong Kong. It is a contrast from the Hong Kong Island and Kowloon Peninsular itself.  James mentioned that 70-80% of Hong Kong is filled with country parks.  Much of what Hong Kong is known internationally is for its immensely dense cityscapes, but one must visit one of its many country parks to experience the true Hong Kong.

We took a hike down to the coast line in search for the Thoressa monastyrskyi (Monastyrskyi's Ace).   This particular skipper is rather unique.  It was discovered by a Russian; hence the species adopts somewhat a Russian name.  It is also endemic to Hong Kong, with the exception of it being found at a small nature reserve in Vietnam.  The life cycle of T. monastyrskyi is also unique, the larvae feeds on bamboo, but its life cycle lasts a full year.  James had been monitoring this species for the last year and knows exactly when they will be out in full force.  The T. monastyrskyi was quite abundant at Sai Kung when I visited, and they are almost at every turn basking in the sun or puddling on damp surfaces.

Throughout the hike up and down, it was very enjoyable to listen to James share his vast knowledge of the early stages of butterflies with me.  

We then headed back to James Young’s “research apartment” where I witnessed his dedication to the research of butterflies and the detailed life histories.   I was like a child watching an expert working his craft by asking all sorts of questions to what James was doing.  I am delighted and appreciative that James took the time and effort to explain to me what he was doing although he was busy taking care of his “caterpillar farm”.

We headed off for dinner around the corner of his block and had some mouth-watering roast goose, before heading off to the airport for my departure back home to Singapore.

Text & Photos by Mark Wong ; Edited by Khew SK

Acknowledgements : 

I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to the HKLS members who took their precious annual leave to bring me about during my stay in Hong Kong.  I am very touched by the great hospitality shown by the HKLS members that made my stay an incredibly enjoyable one. It was also wonderful that all the members shared their vast knowledge of the Hong Kong butterflies with me, which gave me a more profound appreciation of the winged jewels of Hong Kong.

On the behalf of Butterfly Circle, we would like to thank Dr Lee from HKLS who generously gave us copies of the “Photographic Handbook of Hong Kong Butterflies (4^th Edition)” and the HKLS pins to distribute among our members.  I would also like to thank the management of Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve on giving me the book “A Haven for Butterflies and People – A Hong Kong Story Fung Yuen Butterfly Reserve”.  And also special thanks to James Young who gave me a personally signed copy of “The butterflies of Tai Po Kau Nature Reserve”.  This trip was also made possible by Gigi and Arex who helped me plan my butterfly watching itinerary with the the rest of the HKLS members.

ButterflyCircle Plays Host to US Researcher

ButterflyCircle Plays Host
American Researcher Melissa Whitaker visits Singapore


Photo courtesy of Melissa Whitaker

Recently, ButterflyCircle members played host to visiting PhD student Melissa Whitaker from the University of California, Davis.  Melissa is on a Southeast Asian tour, visiting Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand on a quest for research material on myrmecophily (that's butterfly-ant association for us laymen!).  She stopped by Singapore for only a day, unfortunately. But in her own words, "it was the most fruitful trip so far!" 

ButterflyCircle members Khew SK and Horace Tan showed Melissa around the nature reserves in Singapore and she was able to observe, first-hand, some Lycaenidae caterpillars and their ant guardians. Melissa is on the final stretch of her thesis and is due to receive her Doctorate some time next year.   

Melissa recording notes of her caterpillar encounters at Mac Ritchie Nature Reserve

Melissa's research interest, as she mentions on her website is "following in a long tradition of using butterflies to explore questions in ecology and evolution. I am particularly interested in the evolution and ecology of positive species interactions, and am using ants and lycaenid butterflies as a model system."

A clutch of Flos caterpillars tended by ants (on Syzygium grande) that Horace pointed out to Melissa

After Singapore, Melissa heads for the Cameron Highlands in Malaysia, and then off to Koh Samui, Thailand to meet Les Day, another ButterflyCircle member. We wish Melissa all the best in her future endeavours and adventures in Southeast Asia, and hope that she will visit Singapore again and to share with us her knowledge of butterfly-ant relationships some time soon! 

Text & Photos by Khew SK

Reference : Melissa Whitaker's website

Random Gallery - Green Oakblue

Random Butterfly Gallery
The Green Oakblue (Arhopala eumolphus maxwelli)

Our random butterfly this week is the moderately rare Green Oakblue (Arhopala eumolphus maxwelli).  The species is so named because of the iridescent green upperside of the males. It is one of several species of Arhopalas with green uppersides in Singapore and Malaysia. This pristine male was shot by ButterflyCircle early stages expert, Horace Tan, in the heart of the nature reserves in Singapore. This individual appeared to be sunbathing to dry its wings. Horace explained that it was perched on the underside of a leaf that was exposed to the sun.

Life History of the Dark Flat

Life History of the Dark Flat (Tapena thwaitesi bornea)

Butterfly Biodata:
Genus: Tapena Moore, 1881
Species: thwaitesi Moore, 1881
Sub-Species: bornea, Evans, 1931
Wingspan of Adult Butterfly: 30-35mm
Caterpillar Local Host Plant: Dalbergia rostrata (Leguminosae).

A puddling male Dark Flat showing its wing underside.

A male Dark Flat perching on a leaf in the nature reserve.

Physical Description of Adult Butterfly:

Both wings are angulated at vein 3, more strongly so in the hindwing. Above, the male is dark brown with obscure dark and blotchy markings. In contrast, the female is paler brown with more prominent blotchy dark markings On the forewing, there are two (spaces 7-8) or three (in spaces 6-8)  small and hyaline subapical spots. The female has more hyaline spots in the base of spaces 2, 3 and 9, 10 in the forewing, and a hyaline spot near cell-end in the hindwing.  Underneath, the wings are similarly marked as per above. The male has a hair tuft on its hind tibiae.

The upperside of a female Dark Flat.

An animated sequence illustrating the hyalinity of the spots in the wings of a female Dark Flat.

Field Observations of Butterfly Behaviour:

Although C&P4 describes Dark Flat as being rare in the Malay peninsula, this species is only moderately rare in Singapore as there has been a good number of  sightings  made each year.  Its  distribution is restricted to the forested areas within the  Central catchment and Bukit Timah nature reserves. The adults are fast and strong flyers  and  have the habit of perching  with their wings opened flat. They are typically sighted when puddling on wet grounds in the nature reserve.

A Dark Flat puddling together with a Common Hedge Blue on a wet ground soiled with bird dropping.

Another puddling Dark Flat.

Early Stages:

At least two Dalbergia species have been recorded as the larval host for the Dark Flat. One of them has been identified as Dalbergia rostrata, a climber which can be found in several sites in the nature reserves.  The caterpillars of the Dark Flat feed on  leaves of the host plant. When not  feeding, the caterpillars seek safety and concealment in a leaf shelter formed by cutting and folding a leaf fragment along the edge of the leaf.

Local host plant: Dalbergia rostrata.

A partially eaten leaf of the host plant Dalbergia rostrata with a leaf shelter (center of picture).

The eggs of the Dark Flat are laid singly on the young shoot of  host plant. The rosy red egg is dome-shaped with a base diameter of about 0.75mm. There are a number of white longitudinal ridges running from near the top of the egg to the rim of the base. Some of these ridges originate from as far up as the micropylar whilst a few are rather short and end only a short distance from the top.

Two views of an egg of the Dark Flat.

Two views of a mature egg of the Dark Flat. Note the polar portion of the egg shell had already been nibbled away.

Two views of an empty egg shell of the Dark Flat.

The egg decolorises as it matures and takes about 3 days to hatch. The young caterpillar emerges by eating away the polar part of the egg shell. The rest of the egg shell is not eaten by the newly hatched which is about 2mm in length. At this stage, the  body is golden yellow in colour. It has very rather short setae on the body surface, and a small tuff of setae at the posterior end. The black head capsule is  heart-shaped. 

Two views of a newly hatched caterpillar, length: 2mm.

Top: Newly hatched caterpillar resting after making two cuts along the leaf edge. The cutting would resume later and continue until a flap of lamina can be folded over. Bottom: The finished leaf shelter one day later.

The newly hatched makes its way to the leaf edge to construct its very first leaf shelter right away. It ventures out of the shelter from time to time to feed on the leaf lamina in the vicinity. As the caterpillar grows, the body assumes a yellowish brown coloration. After reaching about 4.5-5mm in about 4 days, the caterpillar moults to the 2nd instar.

Two views of a 1st instar caterpillar, length: 3.1mm.

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

The 2nd instar caterpillar resembles the 1st instar caterpillar closely in body features except for the body colour being  pale whitish. The body has a strong yellowish brown undertone   initially but this changes to a duller tone the instar progresses. This instar lasts about 4 days with the body length reaching about 8-8.5mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 6mm.

Two views of a 2nd instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 7.8mm.

The folded leaf shelter of  a 2nd instar caterpillar.

Another folded leaf shelter of a 2nd instar caterpillar, with varying illumination angles to reveal the presence of the caterpillar in the shelter.

The 3rd instar caterpillar differs from the 2nd instar caterpillar in having a body colour which is  strong whitish and with a weak yellowish to greyish brown undertone.  The head capsule is still mostly black  but the area at its lower periphery decolorises to greyish brown.    This instar takes about 5-5.5 days to complete with body length reaching about 13-14mm.

Two views of a 3rd instar caterpillar,length: 9mm.

A late 3rd instar caterpillar, dormant prior to its moult, length: 13.5mm.

The 4th instar brings about a prominent change in the head capsule which is now broader and mostly beige brown in colour. The head is also outlined in dark brown on its periphery and along the frontal cleavage line. The body colour assumes a  solid milky white coloration as the instar progresses.  This instar lasts about 8-10 days with body length reaching about 18-19mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar, early in this stage, length: 13mm.

Two views of a 4th instar caterpillar,  late in this stage, length: 17mm.

The 5th instar caterpillar has similar body markings and colour as in the late 4th instar except for the colour of its head which has now changed to a uniform beige brown due to the loss of the   frontal dark brown stripe. The 5th instar lasts for about 13-14 days, and the body length reaches up to 28-29mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar,  early in this stage, length: 20mm.

Two views of a 5th instar caterpillar, late in this stage, length: 27.5mm.

On the last day of 5th instar, the body decolorises  to a very pale translucent white. The caterpillar ceases feeding and stays within its leaf shelter. The pre-pupatory larva prepares for the pupal phase with a series of silk construction work with the main pieces being a silk girdle across the dorsum of its early abdominal segments, and a short and thickened transverse silk band on the substrate at  its posterior end. Both the  girdle and the transverse band are further secured by vertical/oblique threads to the inner wall of the shelter. Soon the pre-pupatory larva becomes dormant in its leaf shelter. Pupation takes place about 1 day later.

Two views of a  pre-pupatory larva of the Dark Flat.

The girdled pupa is secured with its cremaster attached to the short transverse band on the substrate. It has a short thorax, a rather long abdomen and  a pointed rostrum. The body is pale whitish green with no markings. Length of pupae: 18-19mm.

Two views of a pupa of the Dark Flat.

After about 7 days in the pupal stage, the development within the pupa  comes to an end and the pupa turns brown in the abdomen,  dark brown to black in the thorax and wing case. The following day, the adult butterfly emerges from the pupal case.

Two views of a mature pupa of the Dark Flat.

A newly eclosed female Dark Flat.

A newly eclosed male Dark Flat.

References:

• [C&P4] The Butterflies of The Malay Peninsula, A.S. Corbet and H.M. Pendlebury, 4th Edition, The Malayan Nature Society.
• A Field Guide to the Butterflies of Singapore, Khew S K, Ink on Paper Comm. Pte. Ltd., 2010. 
• Butterflies of Thailand, Pisuth EK-Amnuay, 1st Edition, 2006.

Text by Horace Tan, Photos by Jonathan Soong, Henry Koh, Loke P F, Anthony Wong   and Horace Tan