''Potanthus'' is a large genus of

skipper butterflies Skippers are a family of the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) named the Hesperiidae. Being diurnal, they are generally called butterflies. They were previously placed in a separate superfamily, Hesperioidea; however, the most recent taxonomy ...

. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, all of which look very similar to each other and are often only reliably identifiable through the examination of the male genitalia. ''Potanthus'' species are sun-loving diurnal flyers. They are usually found in

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Works * ...

and

secondary forests A secondary forest (or second-growth forest) is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a timber harvest or clearing for agriculture, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident. ...

, as well as in partly cleared areas, grasslands, and near small villages. Occasionally they may be found in

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

s and

mangrove forest Mangrove forests, also called mangrove swamps, mangrove thickets or mangals, are productive wetlands that occur in coastal intertidal zones. Mangrove forests grow mainly at tropical and subtropical latitudes because mangroves cannot withstand fr ...

s. The larvae feed on '' Bambusa'' (bamboo) and '' Dendrocalamus'' (both Gramineae). It includes the following species: :*''

Potanthus amor ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, a ...

'' Evans, 1932 - Timor,

Sumba Sumba ( id, Pulau Sumba) is an island in eastern Indonesia. It is one of the Lesser Sunda Islands and is in the province of East Nusa Tenggara. Sumba has an area of , and the population was 779,049 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as a ...

, and Oinanaisa :*''

Potanthus chloe ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, a ...

'' Eliot, 1960 - endemic to Malaysia :*''

Potanthus confucius ''Potanthus confucius'', the Chinese dart or Confucian dart, is a butterfly belonging to the family Hesperiidae. They are found from Sri Lanka, India to China and Japan and down to Sumatra and Java in Indonesia. Some museum specimens have also be ...

'' (Chinese dart or Confucian dart) :*''

Potanthus dara ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, a ...

'' (Kollar, 1845) - Himalayas, Indo-China, Malaysia :*''

Potanthus diffusus ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, a ...

'' Hsu, Tsukiyama & Chiba, 2005 - endemic to Taiwan :*''

Potanthus fettingi ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, a ...

'' (Möschler, 1878) - Sundaland, Sulawesi, and the Philippines :*''

Potanthus flavus ''Potanthus flavus'' is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found from the Amur region of Russia to Japan, as well as in Thailand, the Philippines and China (Jilin, Hebei, Shandong, Hunan, Fujian and Yunnan). The wingspan The wings ...

'' (Murray, 1875) - Amur to

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, China, the Philippines, and Thailand :*'' Potanthus juno'' (Evans, 1932) - Assam to the Malay Peninsula, Zhejiang :*'' Potanthus ganda'' (Fruhstorfer, 1911) - Assam, Indochina, southern China,

Sundaland Sundaland (also called Sundaica or the Sundaic region) is a biogeographical region of South-eastern Asia corresponding to a larger landmass that was exposed throughout the last 2.6 million years during periods when sea levels were lower. It ...

, and

Calamian The Calamian Islands or the Calamianes is a group of islands in the province of Palawan, Philippines. It includes: * Busuanga Island * Coron Island * Culion Island * Calauit Island * Malcapuya Island * Banana Island * Pass Island * Calumbuyan Isl ...

, Palawan :*''

Potanthus hetaerus ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Mabille, 1883) - the Philippines, and Sulawesi :*''

Potanthus ilion ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (de Nicéville, 1897) - endemic to Lombok :*''

Potanthus lydia ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Evans, 1934) - western China to the Malay Peninsula :*''

Potanthus mara ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Evans, 1932) (Sikkim dart) - endemic to Tibet :*'' Potanthus motzui'' Hsu, Li & Li, 1990 - endemic to Taiwan :*''

Potanthus mingo ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Edwards, 1866) - the Philippines, Java, Assam, Burma, Indochina, and Yunnan :*'' Potanthus miyashitai'' Fujioka & Tsukiyama, 1975 :*'' Potanthus nesta'' (Evans, 1934) - Yunnan and Sichuan, China :*''

Potanthus niobe ''Potanthus niobe'' is a species of skipper butterflies Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brig ...

'' (Evans, 1934) - endemic to the Philippines :*'' Potanthus omaha'' (Edwards, 1863) - Burma to Indochina, Tawi-Tawi and Mindanao in the Philippines,

Sulawesi Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...

and Sumbawa :*''

Potanthus pallida ''Potanthus pallida'', commonly known as the pallid dart or pale dart, is a species of butterfly in the family Hesperiidae found in India. References

Potanthus Butterflies of Indochina Butterflies described in 1932 {{hesperiinae-stub ...

'' (Evans, 1932) (pallid dart) - Sri Lanka, India, southern China, and southern Thailand :*''

Potanthus palnia ''Potanthus palnia'', commonly known as the Palni dart, is a butterfly belonging to the family Hesperiidae found in India and Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portio ...

'' (Evans, 1914) (Palni dart) - the Palni Hills of southern India, Burma to Sumatra, southeastern Tibet and China :*'' Potanthus pamela'' (Evans, 1934) :*'' Potanthus parvus'' Johnson & Johnson, 1980 :*'' Potanthus pava'' (Fruhstorfer, 1911) (Pava dart) - Taiwan, India, Indochina, Malay Peninsula, Philippines, and Sulawesi :*''

Potanthus pseudomaesa ''Potanthus pseudomaesa'', commonly known as the Indian dart, is a species of butterfly belonging to the family Hesperiidae. Iit is found in India and Sri Lanka. The larvae are known to feed on ''Axonopus compressus ''Axonopus compressus'' (s ...

'' (Moore, 1882)(Indian dart) - lower Himalayas, India, Sri Lanka, Yunnan :*''

Potanthus rectifasciata ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Elwes & Edwards, 1897) (branded dart) - Sikkim to the

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula (Malay: ''Semenanjung Tanah Melayu'') is a peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area ...

, Yunnan :*'' Potanthus riefenstahli'' Huang, 2003 - Yunnan :*''

Potanthus serina ''Potanthus serina'', the large dart, is a species of butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. It is found on the Andamans, as well as in southern Burma, Singapore and the Philippines. The habitat consists of grassy areas and mangrove areas. The w ...

'' Plötz, 1883) (large dart) - Burma to Indochina, the Philippines :*''

Potanthus sita ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Evans, 1932) :*'' Potanthus taqini'' Huang, 2001 - endemic to Tibet :*'' Potanthus tibetana'' Huang, 2002 - Tibet and Yunnan :*''

Potanthus trachala ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Mabille, 1878) - India, Indochina, Malaysia, and southern China :*''

Potanthus upadhana ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, ...

'' (Fruhstorfer, 1911) - Java, Lombok :*''

Potanthus wilemanni ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, a ...

'' (Evans, 1934) - Taiwan :*''

Potanthus yani ''Potanthus'' is a large genus of skipper butterflies. They are commonly known as darts. They are found from South Asia to East Asia, and down to maritime Southeast Asia (though not extending towards New Guinea). It includes about 35 species, a ...

'' Huang, 2002 - China

Gallery

File:Potanthus_pseudomaesa,_Kerala,_India_2009-10-18.jpg, The Indian dart (''

'') from Kerala, India File:Potanthus flavus1.jpg, ''

'' from

File:Potanthus niobe - Philippines (1).jpg, ''

'' from Mindanao, Philippines File:Lesser Dart Potanthus omaha omaha. DSCF6561 (14). Singapore.JPG, '' Potanthus omaha'' from Singapore File:Potanthus pava - Luzon, Philippines.jpg, '' Potanthus pava'' from Luzon, Philippines

References

External links

Images representing ''Potanthus''
at Consortium for the Barcode of Life
Images representing ''Potanthus''
at Encyclopedia of Life {{Taxonbar, from=Q7234667 Hesperiidae genera