Samia tetrica Rebel

Philosamia cynthia tetrica Rebel, 1923, Verh. zool. -bot. Ges. Wien, 73: 109.

Philosamia cynthia borneensis Rebel, 1925, Annls naturh. Mus. Wien, 39: 168, syn. n. **

Samia borneensis Rebel; Allen, 1981: 111; Holloway, 1982: 192; Lampe, 1985: 8.

Diagnosis

This is much smaller species than the previous two, a dark greenish grey-brown, the fasciae straight with grey rays distad, and the ocellar markings lunular rather than triangular, transparent.

Taxonomic Notes

This taxon flies with S. cynthia in Peninsular Malaysia and was therefore accorded specific status by Holloway (1982). W.A. Nässig has drawn the author’s attention to the older name, tetrica Rebel from Singapore, illustrated subsequently by Rebel (1925, loc. cit.). This taxon falls within Rebel’s insularis Vollenhoven group that embraces all taxa from Sundaland eastwards, all somewhat greenish brown with relatively straight fasciae.

Nässig (pers. comm.) has indicated that Sumatran Samia are distinct from the two in Peninsular Malaysia (one of which is true cynthia). Specimens from the Philippines (luzonica Watson, mindanaensis Rebel) and Sulawesi (vandenberghi Watson) have the fasciae somewhat broader, with (luzonica examined only) minor differences in the male genitalia (broader, less excavated apical portion of the valve, more angular saccular zone). These taxa might prove best grouped together under luzonica, the oldest name, and may prove to bear a sister relationship to tetrica. The relationship of tetrica to the Javan insularis also needs investigation.

Nässig et al. (1996) placed Samia tetrica Rebel as a subspecies of insularis Vollenhoven (Java), with ssp. vaneeckei Watson in Sumatra. Samia species in mainland Asia have been reviewed by Peigler (1992) who suggested that the species referred to cynthia Drury in Barlow (1982) was is more likely to be walkeri C. & R. Felder or another species. Two endemic species occur in Sulawesi (Naumann & Nässig, 1995) and two in the Philippines (one in Palawan and another throughout the main archipelago; Nässig & Treadaway, 1998a). Peigler & Naumann (2003) presented an exhaustive revision of the genus Samia, extending its range east to Timor in the Lesser Sundas and to the Moluccas, and recording the early stages as feeding in nature on 26 families of dicotyledonous plants. The taxon from Peninsular Malaysia attributed to walkeri (a synonym of cynthia Drury) is S. kohlli Naumann & Peigler, also occurring through the S.E. Asian Peninsula north to south-west China. The other Sundanian species are tetrica (Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo), insularis (Sumatra, Java) and abrerai Naumann & Peigler (Java, Bali).

Geographical range

Borneo.

Peninsular Malaysia.

Habitat preference

Most specimens have been recorded from lowland forest, though one was taken at 1618m on Bukit Retak, Brunei and at a similar altitude on G. Mulu, Sarawak.

Biology

A mature larva was found by the author in the G. Mulu National Park.

It pupated before a full examination could be made.

In general coloration it was very different from that of cynthia, brownish with yellowish tubercles.

Semper (1896-1902) illustrated the larva of luzonica (as ricini Boisduval) as bluish grey with yellowish tubercles, prolegs, anal clasper, head and prothoracic dorsum.