Ochus subvittatus

Ochus subvittatus, the tiger hopper, is the only species in the monotypic moth genus Ochus of the family Hesperiidae. The genus was erected by Lionel de Nicéville in 1894. The species was first described by Frederic Moore in 1878. It is found in the Khasi Hills and Naga Hills of India, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Yunnan.[1][2][3][4]

Ochus subvittatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Hesperiidae
Tribe:	Aeromachini
Genus:	Ochus de Nicéville, 1894
Species:	O. subvittatus
Binomial name
Ochus subvittatus (Moore, 1878)
Synonyms
Ampittia subvittatus

Wingspan

The wingspan of the tiger hopper is 20–25 mm (1–1 in).[1]

Subspecies

The subspecies of Ochus subvittatus found in India is:[5]

• Ochus subvittatus subradiatus Moore, 1878 – Khasi tiger hopper

Distribution

This species is found from Sikkim to Arunachal Pradesh in India, and in Bhutan, Nepal and several places in Myanmar.[6]

Description

Both wings of upside are iridescent Van Dyke brown. In the forewing, several bright yellow streaks divided by the veins placed obliquely beyond the end of the cell; or even immaculate; with all the cilia are lighter yellow than the spots when present and broadly interested with the brown opposite to the end of the veins. In underside, both wings and the bases of the cilia are rich in Van Dyke brown throughout with darker than the above; veined and margined with rich chrome yellow.[7]

In the forewing the costal margin is little beyond its middle, the costal and subcostal nervules to the costal and outer margins. The extremity of the third median nervule veined, and the external machines, and the extremity of the third median nervule veined, and the outer margin bordered, with chrome-yellow, so that the wings may be described as increasingly bordered from base to the apex, and increasingly from the apex to the sub-median nervule with yellow streaked with dark brown.[7]

The hindwing is yellow bordered, with the yellow veins broadly pointed on both sides with yellow.[7]

The upperside of the head, thorax and the abdomen are dark Van Dyke brown with a yellow underside.[7]

Habit and habitat

The tiger hopper is mostly found in the high evergreen forests that experience ample rainfall. It prefers to fly close to the ground. The flight is weak and follow the fluttering pattern. Shaded or semi-shaded forest tracks are its preferred area. Males are sometimes found puddling in damp soil or wet rock. Females are hardly seen. They also spotted basking in the sun, opening their wings.[1][8]

Seasonality

The flight period for the tiger hopper is from April to October.[1]

References

1. Kehimkar, Isaac (2016). BNHS Field Guides: Butterflies of India. Mumbai: Bombay Natural History Society. p. 87. ISBN 9789384678012.
2. Beccaloni, G.; Scoble, M.; Kitching, I.; Simonsen, T.; Robinson, G.; Pitkin, B.; Hine, A.; Lyal, C., eds. (2003). "Ochus subvittatus". The Global Lepidoptera Names Index. Natural History Museum. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
3. Savela, Markku, ed. (April 15, 2012). "Ochus de Nicéville, 1894". Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
4. Pitkin, Brian & Jenkins, Paul (November 5, 2004). "Ochus de Nicéville, 1894". Butterflies and Moths of the World. Natural History Museum, London. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
5. "Ampittia subvittatus (Moore, 1878) – Tiger Hopper". Butterflies of India. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
6. "On the Rhopalocerous Lepidoptera of Cachar" (PDF). Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. Calcutta: J.W. Thomas. 55 (2): 392. 1887. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
7. Watson, E. Y. (1891). Hesperiidae Indica: Being a Reprint of Descriptions of the Hesperiidae of India, Burma and Ceylon. Madras: Vest and Company. p. 69.
8. Smetacek, Peter (2014). A Naturalist's Guide to Butterflies of Indian (Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka). New Delhi: Prakash Books India Pvt. Ltd. p. 93. ISBN 978-817599406-5.