|
Post by luehdorfia on Mar 15, 2018 18:37:02 GMT
I haven't seen them myself yet, but friends that live in Nanjing have sent me some beautiful photos of Luehdorfia chinensis that emerged already on the 10th of March this year. I think it is pretty early, normally it would be April, but Nanjing has a low altitude and apparently it was very warm for a few days 26-28 degrees for five days. Now it got cold again and it is raining for the next ten days, but hopefully I will still see some at the end of March. Around Nanjing there must be a peak season this year, I heard you can see up to 100 Luehdorfia chinensis within a day during the last days on a single mountain.
Here is the link to the video, it was taken on the 12th of March, on Baohua Mountain, which is just about 10km east of the city centre of Nanjing, easy to find on google maps:
|
|
|
Post by Adam Cotton on Mar 15, 2018 21:05:42 GMT
Look out for Graphium (Pazala) alebion there at the end of March too.
Adam.
|
|
|
Post by luehdorfia on Mar 16, 2018 3:35:07 GMT
Hi Adam, I have already heard about Pazala alebion from my friends, it is supposed to be much rarer than Luehdorfia chinensis in the Nanjing area, very difficult to find. The same goes for Pazala tamerlana. What do you know about the two? Are they that rare? Probably very local.
|
|
|
Post by wollastoni on Mar 16, 2018 9:24:19 GMT
Our mediterranean equivalent Zerynthia rumina will be on wings now too ! I'm just waiting for a sunny week-end to see them ! A lot of rain this week...
|
|
|
Post by jmg on Mar 16, 2018 10:33:52 GMT
In Provence, especially in the Luberon mountain where I use to watch butterflies every year, Zeryntia polyxenes fly before (April) Z. rumina (May). The two species fly on the same biotop, in a very localized manner, but not at the same time except for a short while (end of A pril). On this page : photos taken in May : many rumina, none polyxenes. get.google.com/albumarchive/113703781091091595078/album/AF1QipM-88JOsxGKVoXaqcpPziv0NLVM_PDb673Z3Cws I plan to go mid April in the mountains of Esterel or Maures to photograph Z. polyxenes. May be in the Luberon too.
|
|
|
Post by Adam Cotton on Mar 16, 2018 15:34:14 GMT
Hi Adam, I have already heard about Pazala alebion from my friends, it is supposed to be much rarer than Luehdorfia chinensis in the Nanjing area, very difficult to find. The same goes for Pazala tamerlana. What do you know about the two? Are they that rare? Probably very local. If alebion is like mullah in occurrence you really need to be at the right place and the right week, otherwise you will not find them, but in the correct habitat they are not uncommon in season. I suspect tamerlanus will be similar, although that is more common in Sichuan, and certainly much more widespread than alebion, which does not get as far west. All of the alebion I have ever seen on sale are either tamerlanus or parus. Adam.
|
|
|
Post by luehdorfia on Mar 16, 2018 15:56:04 GMT
@adam now that makes a lot of sense! I was always confused by the alebion on sale, also in the US, which are not that expensive, but they are tamerlana actually. Then it is alebion that is so scarce, and some Chinese sellers just mix it up all the time. I should be able to get a good location for alebion this year and hopefully will see them. Does that mean you don’t have alebion in your collection?
|
|
|
Post by Adam Cotton on Mar 16, 2018 16:45:06 GMT
I have 3, all from Bao Hua Shan, late March.
It also flies in Tien Mu Shan, further south.
Adam.
|
|
|
Post by deliasfanatic on Mar 16, 2018 17:18:10 GMT
I am missing genuine alebion, and any chance to get it would be great!
|
|
saber
New Aurelian
Posts: 4
|
Post by saber on Mar 26, 2018 11:33:43 GMT
I haven't seen them myself yet, but friends that live in Nanjing have sent me some beautiful photos of Luehdorfia chinensis that emerged already on the 10th of March this year. I think it is pretty early, normally it would be April, but Nanjing has a low altitude and apparently it was very warm for a few days 26-28 degrees for five days. Now it got cold again and it is raining for the next ten days, but hopefully I will still see some at the end of March. Around Nanjing there must be a peak season this year, I heard you can see up to 100 Luehdorfia chinensis within a day during the last days on a single mountain. Here is the link to the video, it was taken on the 12th of March, on Baohua Mountain, which is just about 10km east of the city centre of Nanjing, easy to find on google maps: It is not surprising to see them in the 10th of March in Nanjing. Actually, chinese luehdorfia emerges around late February and disappears around early April this years in Nanjing may be due to the global warming. Also, they are quite common and you can see them nearly on every mountain around Nanjing. If you just want to see chinese luehdorfia and orangetip , I suggest you can go to Dou Shuai Si in Shi Zi Ling , northwest of Nanjing,but no G.alebion there.
|
|
saber
New Aurelian
Posts: 4
|
Post by saber on Mar 26, 2018 12:39:25 GMT
I have 3, all from Bao Hua Shan, late March. It also flies in Tien Mu Shan, further south. Adam. Hi Adam, I have read your book GUIDE TO THE BUTTERFLIES OF THE PALEARCIC REGION and find a female G.alebion specimen caught in Taibai Shan ,Shaanxi, China. My friends in Shaanxi doubt whether this information is true, because they have collected butterflies there many years but have not caught a G.alebion . Instead, tamerlanus is quite common there. I also find a male G.alebion specimen in Mount Emei,Sichuan,China in the book BUTTERFLIES OF CHINA Vol.1 (WU, HSU, 2017 ). Is there any possibility that the alebion can distribute that west? I can offer some information about alebion in BAO HUA SHAN ,east of Nanjing, Jiangsu,China. I have watched them since the spring of 2014 and usually they emerges around late March and disappears around mid April. Host plant is Lindera rubronervia ,which is quite common in Baohuashan. They love the flower of prunus persica very much and we call them the king of peachblossom. Every year many butterflywatchers go to BAOHUASHAN to watch alebion which is one of star butterflies in Nanjing.
|
|
|
Post by Adam Cotton on Mar 26, 2018 14:58:59 GMT
Sorry, I don't know the origin of the female alebion specimen from Tabai Shan, I believe the photo was provided by Bozano. I did question it during the editing process, but it seems I have no record of a reply. Possibly there was a verbal discussion with Racheli about it when he was here with me. I will ask Racheli about this specimen, but he often doesn't reply to e-mails for a few months as he's away in the Dominican Republic without internet much of the time nowadays.
Adam.
|
|
|
Post by Adam Cotton on Mar 26, 2018 15:07:16 GMT
As for alebion from Emei Shan, I very much doubt that this species is found anywhere near there. I have never seen any valid records from West Sichuan, and indeed the female from Taibai Shan (if verified) is the westernmost record I know of.
Adam.
|
|
saber
New Aurelian
Posts: 4
|
Post by saber on Mar 29, 2018 2:01:11 GMT
As for alebion from Emei Shan, I very much doubt that this species is found anywhere near there. I have never seen any valid records from West Sichuan, and indeed the female from Taibai Shan (if verified) is the westernmost record I know of. Adam. Thanks,Adam~ I asked Hu Shaoji yesterday ,who participated in writing BUTTERFLIES OF CHINA ,about the specimen from Sichuan. He said this specimen need to be verified. Also,two phenomenon reminds me to check the distribution of Lindera rubronervia, which is the host plant of alebion.First,we only record one kind plant that female alebion choose to lay eggs on in Baohuashan this years , although there are several Lauraceae there. Second, the larve seems to grow slower and smaller when I change other Lauraceae,such as Cinnamomum camphora but still can pupate. Although I cannot be sure alebion is monophagous since some other pazala can use several Lauraceae in the wild ,like eurous and mullah, it still has reference value to check the distribution of Lindera rubronervia. I find this plant mainly distribute in jiangsu, anhui, zhejiang,fujian,jiangxi,henan, hubei and hunan ,which quite consistent with the main distribution of alebion. There are some records of this plant in other provinces like Bijie,Guizhou in 1959; Heishui and Miya, Sichuan in 1935; Shaowu, Huilin,Fujian in 1937 and one from Guangxi( but misidentified). However, Flora of China didn't include these records and these records are age-old. So I really doubt the authenticity of specimen from Tabai shan and Emei shan. They are both hot spots for butterflycollecters in China and alebion is not hard to catch. Here is the distribution of Lindera rubronervia.Small red spot means provincial capital .Orange spot means the locality of specimen and the depth of color means the number of specimen. insert code here
|
|
|
Post by omescharming on Mar 29, 2018 2:34:03 GMT
As for alebion from Emei Shan, I very much doubt that this species is found anywhere near there. I have never seen any valid records from West Sichuan, and indeed the female from Taibai Shan (if verified) is the westernmost record I know of. Adam. Thanks,Adam~ I asked Hu Shaoji yesterday ,who participated in writing BUTTERFLIES OF CHINA ,about the specimen from Sichuan. He said this specimen need to be verified. Also,two phenomenon reminds me to check the distribution of Lindera rubronervia, which is the host plant of alebion.First,we only record one kind plant that female alebion choose to lay eggs on in Baohuashan this years , although there are several Lauraceae there. Second, the larve seems to grow slower and smaller when I change other Lauraceae,such as Cinnamomum camphora but still can pupate. Although I cannot be sure alebion is monophagous since some other pazala can use several Lauraceae in the wild ,like eurous and mullah, it still has reference value to check the distribution of Lindera rubronervia. I find this plant mainly distribute in jiangsu, anhui, zhejiang, jiangxi,henan, hubei and hunan ,which quite consistent with the main distribution of alebion. There are some records of this plant in other provinces like Bijie,Guizhou in 1959; Heishui and Miya, Sichuan in 1935; Shaowu, Huilin,Fujian in 1937 and one from Guangxi( but misidentified). However, Flora of China didn't include these records and these records are age-old. So I really doubt the authenticity of specimen from Tabai shan and Emei shan. They are both hot spots for butterflycollecters in China and alebion is not hard to catch. Here is the distribution of Lindera rubronervia.Small red spot means provincial capital .Orange spot means the locality of specimen and the depth of color means the number of specimen. View Attachmentinsert code here 大师牛逼
|
|