#6 - Mixed Punch Dodona ouida Hewitson, 1865

#6 - Mixed Punch Dodona ouida Hewitson, 1865

Dodona ouida, the Mixed Punch, is a small but striking butterfly found in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and central Vietnam that belongs to the Punches and Judies, that is, the family Riodinidae.

Taxonomic position

Class: Insecta
Order:     Lepidoptera
Suborder: Rhopalocera
Family:  Riodinidae
Genus:   Dodona
Species: ouida Hewitson, 1865

 Figure 1. Dodona ouida from Shirui Hills Photographed by: Jatishwor Singh Irungbam

Description

The butterfly is about 40-55 mm in wingspan. Hindwing Tailless, but produced into a broad lobe. In Males, upperside of the wing brown with three oblique orange bands on forewing, hindwing with two postdiscal orange bands and a narrow sub-marginal line. Female is slightly brown and with a dark submarginal line inside. 

Biology

The larvae of the butterfly feeds on Wild Berry Maesa  chisia (Myrsinaceae). 

Habits

A fast flying butterfly, very active during the day, mostly seen basking in the sun with open wing. Males usually visits hill tops. Mostly seen in the wing during April to December between the 1200 to 2400 m altitude. In Nepal D. ouida seen perched in the ridges, especially on the summits and maximum activities during 1100 to 1200 hrs. Mmales rested with wings together on dorsal leaf surfaces from 1 to 3 meters high, but never on the highest branches.

Figure 2. Same individual (Fig 1) Dodona ouida from Shirui Hills Photographed by: Jatishwor Singh Irungbam

Sightings in Manipur
The butterfly has been photographed from Shirui Hills in the Ukhrul district during July 2016. The butterfly was seen sitting on the leaves of plum tree which grows on the backyard of Shirui Guest House.

References

• Bingham, C. T. (1905). The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma Butterflies. 1 (1st ed.). London: Taylor and Francis, Ltd.

• Callaghan, C. J. (1997). A Study of the Riodinid Butterflies of the Genus Dodona in Nepal (Riodinidae). Journal of Research on Lepidoptera. 36:1-15.
• Kehimkar, I. (2008). The Book of Indian Butterflies. Bombay Natural History Society, 497 pp.

• Ek-Amnuay, P. (2006). Butterflies of Thailand, Vol 2. Bangkok: Baan Lae Suan, 867 pp.

• Inayoshi, Y. (2016). A Check List of Butterflies in Indo-China. Chiefly from Thailand, Laos & Vietnam. http://yutaka.it-n.jp/rio/8a030001.html [Access on December 4, 2016]