Aroana rubra Bethune Baker

Aroana rubra Bethune-Baker, 1906, Novit. zool., 13: 281.

Aroana porphyria Hampson, 1918, Novit zool., 25: 174, syn. n.

Diagnosis

Both this and A. baliensis share the general wing shape and facies described in the generic account. In cingalensis Walker (Sri Lanka) and A. baliensis, the fasciation is finer, less diffuse, particularly the forewing medial which is often conspicuously darker, with a sharp angle at the anterior part of the black discal mark. This mark is less strongly arched in cingalensis and A. baliensis. The forewing appears generally more variegated with grey in a rippled fashion in rubra.

Taxonomic note

No significant differences were found between the male genitalia of rubra and porphyria.

Geographical range

New Guinea, Australia (Nielsen et al., 1996), Solomons, Seram, Sulawesi, Bali, Borneo, Peninsular Malaysia (Barlow colln), India, Sri Lanka. The species illustrated for Thailand by Kononenko & Pinratana (2005: Plate 44, fig 6) may well be pulchra.

Habitat preference

This is a less infrequently encountered species (two specimens during the Mulu survey) than the next, recorded in forest from the lowlands to 1500m. Chey (1994) recorded several from lowland softwood plantations.

Genitalia: