''Argynnis sagana'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The group comprise ...

in the family

Nymphalidae The Nymphalidae are the largest family of butterflies, with more than 6,000 species distributed throughout most of the world. Belonging to the superfamily Papilionoidea, they are usually medium-sized to large butterflies. Most species have a red ...

Description

''Argynnis sagana'' has a

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan o ...

of about . This species displays little geographical variations, but it is well known for the significant differences (

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most an ...

) between males (orange-brown wings with black markings) and females (dark brown or black wings with white bands), so individuals of different sexes can be mistakenly attributed to different species. The caterpillars are dark brown, with long yellowish appendages similar to thorns.

Biology

This butterfly has a single brood and flies from July to September depending on the location. They feed on ''

Viola ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...

'' species ('' Viola grypoceras'', '' Viola verecunda'', '' Viola eizanensis'', '' Viola uniflora'').

Distribution and habitat

This species is present in broadleaves or mixed light forests of China,

Mongolia Mongolia; Mongolian script: , , ; lit. "Mongol Nation" or "State of Mongolia" () is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south. It covers an area of , with a population of just 3.3 million, ...

, South Eastern

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

and Japan.

Taxonomy

This species used to be included in a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

called ''Damora'' Nordmann, 1851, which is now regarded as a junior synonym of ''

Argynnis ''Argynnis'' is a genus of butterflies in the family Nymphalidae, one of several groups known as " fritillaries". Its species are commonly found in Europe and Asia. Systematics Several current species of ''Argynnis'' used to be included in dist ...

''.

Subspecies

*''Argynnis sagana sagana'' Doubleday, 1847 *''Argynnis sagana liane'' Fruhstorfer, 1907 (

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole Nanban trade, port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hi ...

) *''Argynnis sagana relicta'' Korshunov, 1984 ( Kemerovo Region, Southern

) *''Argynnis sagana paulina'' Nordman, 1851 ( Irkutsk,

) *''Argynnis sagana nordmanni'' Korshunov, 1984 (Amur region,

Blagoveshchensk Blagoveshchensk ( rus, Благове́щенск, p=bləgɐˈvʲeɕːɪnsk, meaning ''City of the Annunciation'') is a city and the administrative center of Amur Oblast, Russia. It is located at the confluence of the Amur and the Zeya Rivers, o ...

Region). *''Argynnis sagana ilona'' Fruhstorfer, 1907 (

Tsushima Island is an island of the Japanese archipelago situated in-between the Tsushima Strait and Korea Strait, approximately halfway between Kyushu and the Korean Peninsula. The main island of Tsushima, once a single island, was divided into two in 1671 by ...

)

References

Biolib

External links

Argynnis Butterflies described in 1847 {{Heliconiinae-stub