Ericeia pertendens Walker

Remigia pertendens Walker, 1858, List Specimens lepid. Insects Colln Br. Mus., 14: 1512.

Ericeia gonioptila Prout, 1922, Bull. Hill Mus. Witley, 1: 233.

Ericeia eurytaenia Prout, 1929, Bull. Hill Mus. Witley, 3: 113.

Ericeia occidua Prout, 1929, Bull. Hill Mus. Witley, 3: 115.

Ericeia pertendens iopolia Fletcher, 1957, Nat. Hist. Rennell Isl., 2: 50.

Diagnosis

This and the next two species have a much more ashy grey forewing ground colour than the ones described above, and have conspicuously darker markings associated with the forewing submarginal: in pertendens and the next species, these are restricted to the apex near the tornus in both sexes. The postmedials of all wings are usually darkly punctate, and the forewing reniform is relatively small and usually edged darkly.

Taxonomic note

Other species related to pertendens are E. pallidula Prout (Buru), E. amplipennis Prout (Seram) and E. rectimargo Prout (New Guinea).

Geographical range

Indo-Australian tropics to Solomons.

Habitat preference

The species appears to be uncommon in Borneo, only known from singleton males from the Danum Valley Field Centre (forest edge at 100m) and dipterocarp forest at 250m on the slopes of the limestone G. Api.

Biology

Miyata (1983) and Sugi (1987) noted that the larva fed on Berchemia (Rhamnaceae); Robinson et al. (2001) recorded Cassia (Leguminosae) for a species tentatively identified as pertendens by the author (unpublished IIE records) from the Andamans.

Genitalia: