OPEN ACCESS The Journal of Threatened Taxa is dedicated to building evidence for conservaton globally by publishing peer-reviewed artcles online every month at a reasonably rapid rate at www.threatenedtaxa.org. All artcles published in JoTT are registered under Creatve Commons Atributon 4.0 Internatonal License unless otherwise mentoned. JoTT allows unrestricted use of artcles in any medium, reproducton, and distributon by providing adequate credit to the authors and the source of publicaton. Journal of Threatened Taxa Building evidence for conservaton globally www.threatenedtaxa.org ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print) Note New nymphalid butterfly records from Jammu & Kashmir, India Shakha Sharma & Neeraj Sharma 26 October 2018 | Vol. 10 | No. 11 | Pages: 12602-12606 10.11609/jot.3874.10.11.12602-12606 For Focus, Scope, Aims, Policies and Guidelines visit htp://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/about/editorialPolicies#custom-0 For Artcle Submission Guidelines visit htp://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/about/submissions#onlineSubmissions For Policies against Scientfc Misconduct visit htp://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/about/editorialPolicies#custom-2 For reprints contact <[email protected]> Publisher & Host Partners Member Threatened Taxa Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 October 2018 | 10(11): 12602–12606 Note India is home to 461 species of New nymphalid butterfly records from buterfies belonging to the largest Jammu & Kashmir, India family Nymphalidae (Varshney 1 2 ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) & Smetacek 2015; Kehimkar Shakha Sharma & Neeraj Sharma ISSN 0974-7893 (Print) 2016). A number of reports on 1 Department of Zoology, Govt. Gandhi Memorial Science College, the range extension of buterfy Jammu, Jammu & Kashmir 180006, India OPEN ACCESS species are consistently pouring 2 Faculty of Life Sciences, Insttute of Mountain Environment, in from the states of Utarakhand, University of Jammu, Bhaderwah Campus, Bhaderwah, Jammu & Kashmir 182222, India Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab of 1 [email protected], 2 [email protected] the northwestern Himalaya, but the (corresponding author) informaton on the distributon and range extension of buterfies in the northern Himalayan state of Jammu & Kashmir is scanty and equivocal. The Jammu region of Manwal Range, Jammu, Samba, and Udhampur districts Jammu & Kashmir ofers a wide range of habitats from (south), Billawar-Basoholi-Bani, Kathua District (east), the alluvial plains of the Ravi and Chenab in the south to Batote-Bhaderwah, Ramban and Doda districts (north), the moderately elevated Shiwaliks, Pir-Panjal, and Great and Paddar in Kishtwar District (far northeast) in an Himalaya northwards, bordering Kashmir in the north elevaton range of 320–3,200 m (Fig. 1) from June 2016 and Ladakh in the northeast. While a good account of to June 2018. During the exploratons, we sighted fve buterfy fauna is available for Kashmir (Home 1938; nymphalid buterfy species previously not reported Mani & Singh 1962; Das et al. 1964; Das & Verma 1965; from the state of Jammu & Kashmir. The species were Qureshi et al. 2014) and Ladakh (Meinertzhagan 1927; photographed in the feld and the geo-coordinates were Tshikolovets 2005; Sidhu et al. 2012; Sondhi et al. 2017), recorded. The species were identfed by consultng only a few records are available from the Jammu region the available literature, viz., keys (Evans 1927, 1932), (Sharma & Sharma 2017a,b, 2018). During the surveys catalogue (Varshney & Smetacek 2015), feld guides conducted in the Jammu Shiwaliks, Sharma & Sharma and books (Varshney 1983, 1993; Kunte 2006; Pajni et (2017a) reported three new nymphalid buterfy species al. 2006; Singh 2010; Kehimkar 2014, 2016; Smetacek for the state and these included Polyura agraria, Athyma 2016; Sondhi & Kunte 2018), annotated checklist (van perius and Lethe europa. Gasse 2017), and online resources (Anonymous 2018a,b; Targetng a wide area, the buterfy surveys were Choker et al. 2018; Karmakar & Sarkar 2018; Kunte et al. conducted in diferent landscapes across sub-tropical 2018). and temperate climatc regimes, viz., Kalidhar and Dalhori forests, Rajouri District (west), Mansar-Surinsar- DOI: htps://doi.org/10.11609/jot.3874.10.11.12602-12606 | ZooBank: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:5D277B08-69EE-449F-8CB3-198D43E69DAC Editor: Sanjay Sondhi, Titli Trust, Dehradun, India. Date of publicaton: 26 October 2018 (online & print) Manuscript details: Ms # 3874 | Received 02 November 2017 | Final received 18 September 2018 | Finally accepted 27 September 2018 Citaton: Sharma, S. & N. Sharma (2018). New nymphalid buterfy records from Jammu & Kashmir, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 10(11): 12602–12606; htps:// doi.org/10.11609/jot.3874.10.11.12602-12606 Copyright: © Sharma & Sharma 2018. Creatve Commons Atributon 4.0 Internatonal License. JoTT allows unrestricted use of this artcle in any medium, reproduc- ton and distributon by providing adequate credit to the authors and the source of publicaton. Funding: Insttute of Mountain Environment, University of Jammu. Competng interests: The authors declare no competng interests. Acknowledgements: The authors gratefully acknowledge the Faculty of Life Sciences, Insttute of Mountain Environment, University of Jammu, for providing logistcs and laboratory access during the surveys and identfcaton. The authorsLOGOs are also thankful to the Department of Forests and Wildlife Protecton, Government of Jammu & Kashmir for the help and support during the feld surveys. 12602 New buterfy records from Jammu & Kashmir Sharma & Sharma Figure 1. Map of the study area showing locatons of buterfy records Heliconiinae © Neeraj Sharma Vagrans egista Kollar (Vagrant) Current known distributon untl this study: India (Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Utarakhand to Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal, and Odisha), Nepal, Bhutan, and Myanmar (van Gasse 2017; Kehimkar 2014, 2016; Varshney & Smetacek 2015; Anonymous 2018a). Remarks: Three individuals were spoted nectaring on the water pepper plant Polygonum hydropiper L. along the banks of lake Mansar (32.6930N & 75.1490E, c. 665m), Samba District, on 22 October 2017. Five individuals were noted mud-puddling on the moist sandy bed of a seasonal stream near Manwal (32.8010E & 75.1400E, c. 575m) in Udhampur District on 28 October Image 1 Vagrant Vagrans egista 2017 (Image 1). Three individuals were again sighted on the same day in an adjacent stream. The species, though widely distributed across the Himalaya with its basking over a leaf of Debregeasia hypoleuca Gaudich known western distributon up to Himachal Pradesh (Image 2a) along a perennial stream near Batote (Kirt et al. 2016; Anonymous 2018a), was recorded for (33.1100N & 75.3400E, c. 1,390m) on the Jammu-Kishtwar the frst tme from the state of Jammu & Kashmir. State Highway. On scanning the area further up along the stream, we notced sluggish swarms of Himalayan Acraea issoria issoria Hubner (Himalayan Yellow Coster) Yellow Coster buterfies hovering and intermitently Current known distributon untl this study: India sitng over Debregeasia hypoleuca Gaudich and (Himachal Pradesh to Arunachal Pradesh), Nepal, Girardinia palmata Blume shrubs . Two days later, on 06 Bhutan, and Myanmar (van Gasse 2017; Kehimkar 2014, June 2018, a few pairs were observed matng (Image 2b) 2016; Varshney & Smetacek 2015; Sondhi & Kunte 2018; while a few others were spoted laying eggs On 19 June Kunte et al. 2018). 2018, we visited the spot again and observed the ventral Remarks: On the sunny evening of 04 June 2018, surface of D. hypoleuca Gaudich leaves loaded with eggs an individual of Himalayan Yellow Coster was spoted along with a few freshly emerged caterpillars (Image Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 October 2018 | 10(11): 12602–12606 12603 New buterfy records from Jammu & Kashmir Sharma & Sharma 2c). The species has its established distributon across the Himalayas from Arunachal Pradesh in the east up to Solan District of Himachal Pradesh in the far west (Kunte et al. 2018) untl this reportng, thus confrming it as an additon to the buterfy fauna of Jammu & Kashmir. Limenitnae Auzakia danava Moore (Indian Commodore) Current known distributon untl this study: India (Himachal Pradesh, Utarakhand to Arunachal Pradesh, northern hills of West Bengal), Nepal, Bhutan, and Myanmar (van Gasse 2017; Kehimkar 2014, 2016; © Neeraj Sharma Varshney & Smetacek 2015; Anonymous 2018b; Sondhi & Kunte 2018). Image 2 a. Himalayan Yellow Coster Acraea issoria issoria (male) Remarks: On the bright sunny afernoon of 23 October 2017, a female individual (Image 3a) was seen hovering over a gregarious Mentha longifolia L. growth near marshy slopes of Pranoo (32.1130N & 75.5750E, c. 1,020m), Bhaderwah. A male individual was spoted perched on a rocky boulder near Nalthi (32.9370N & 75.7120E, c. 2025m), Bhaderwah, on 18 May 2018 (Image 3b). The species has a widespread distributon across the Himalayas, with its western extent reported up to Bandli Wildlife Sanctuary, Mandi District, Himachal Pradesh (Anonymous 2018b). This is the frst sightng of the species from this part of the northwestern Himalayas and thus is a new record for the state of Jammu & Kashmir. Cyrestnae © Neeraj Sharma Pseudergolis wedah Kollar (Himalayan Tabby) Image 2b. Himalayan Yellow Coster Acraea issoria issoria (matng Current known distributon untl this study: India pair) (Himachal Pradesh to Utarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh), Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar (van Gasse 2017; Kehimkar 2014, 2016;