Anthene emolus

Species of butterfly

Anthene emolus, the ciliate blue, is a small butterfly found in India and southeast Asia that belongs to the lycaenids or blues family. The species was first described by Jean Baptiste Godart in 1823.

Upperside: dull purple; bases of the wings suffused with blue; both forewings and hindwings with well marked jet black anteciliary lines, that on the forewing expand slightly at the apex. Hindwing: the costal margin above vein 7 and the dorsal margin below vein 1a fuscous brown; irregular, transverse, sub terminal black spots in interspaces 1 to 3, those in interspaces 1 and 2 much larger than that in interspace 3; posterior basal area covered with long purplish brown hairs. Cilia of both forewings and hindwings brown.

When full fed 0.62 of an inch in length, somewhat dark green in colour (of a darker shade than most Lycaenid larvae), smooth and shining, the whole surface covered with minute pits to be seen only under a strong magnifying glass. The head is very small and retractile as usual and of a pale green colour; the second segment is unmarked, the third to sixth segments inclusive have some obscure reddish brown dorsal blotches, the three following segments are unmarked, the tenth to twelfth segments have somewhat similar blotches to those on the third to the sixth segments, but they are more distinct and darker in shade. There is a pale yellow lateral line just above the legs. All the segments are irregularly and broadly pitted at the sides; these pits seem to assume more or less the form of a longitudinal subdorsal depression, below which to the lateral line the colour of the insect is slightly paler. The whole larva is much depressed, somewhat wider than high and seems to gradually increase in breadth to the tenth segment, the last segment is almost as broad and rounded. The larva varies greatly in colour and markings, some being pale green throughout and unmarked, others again are reddish brown throughout. It feeds in Calcutta on Nephelium litchi, Cassia fistula, and Heynea trijuga, and not improbably, as it feeds on so many bushes, it will eat others. Dr. Forel identifies the ant which attends the larva as Oecophylla smaragdina, Fabr., the large red and green ant which makes immense nests of growing leaves in trees. (Lionel de Nicéville quoted by Bingham)

0.4 of an inch in length, of the usual Lyccenid shape, the tail pointed, the thorax slightly humped and ending in a somewhat sharp ridge line on the back; it is coloured pale ochraceous and bears a prominent diamond shaped mark posteriorly, It is smooth throughout, reddish brown sprinkled with minute darker dots. (de Nicéville)