Firstly, blue pansies, Junonia orithiya, attended my grandfather's grave in Kolkata. I didn't get any upperside shots - they only briefly paused with their wings spread, probably because of the heat - but here is an underside:
Also in Kolkata was this grey pansy, Junonia atlites:
In Mysore I found two more species. This chocolate pansy, Junonia iphita, was flying near Lord Shiva's great bull in the Chamundi hills. I only got long shots of it:
Here is Shiva's bull, carved from a single huge boulder of soapstone:
Shiva won't ride anything else.
My fourth pansy was also flying in Mysore. I think this is the lemon pansy, Junonia lemonias:
It looks much darker in my book, but this was a worn specimen.
I was too early in the year for many Nymphalids - the emperors, admirals and their relatives, for example - but it was good to see this Indian fritillary, Argyreus hyperbius, flying commonly at Doddabetta peak in the Nilgiris:
The only other Nymphalid I found was a single painted lady. I didn't get a good shot of it, and I don't think anyone needs reminding what this species looks like...
For the Satyrids, I saw just one, the common fourring, Ypthima huebneri. This seemed to be quite a variable species. Here is one from the cemetery in Kolkata:
And here is another, from Mysore:
This is a glimpse of the upperside (also in Mysore), which looks a little like some kind of Coenonympha:
Finally, the trip produced just one single skipper, this common banded awl, Hasora chromus.
I was surprised to see so little of this group, but I have to recognise that I was in cities or towns almost all the time and I was only ever going to see the commonest butterflies of urban areas.
Just the swallowtails and whites left to post, which I shall do tomorrow!
Guy
