Tijdschrift voor Entomologie 159 (2016) 81–88 A new subspecies of Nacaduba cyanea Cramer, 1775, from Buru, Maluku, Indonesia (Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae) W. John Tennent & M. Eulàlia Gassó Miracle “Across the world, natural-history collections hold thousands of species awaiting identification. In fact, researchers today find many more novel animals and plants by sifting through decades-old specimens than they do by surveying tropical forests and remote landscapes. An estimated three- quarters of newly named mammal species are already part of a natural-history collection at the time they are identified. They sometimes sit unrecognised for a century or longer, hidden in drawers, half-forgotten in jars, misidentified, unlabelled.” Museums: The endangered dead (C. Kemp, Nature 518 (7539): 292–294, London, 19th February 2015) A new subspecies of Nacaduba cyanea (Cramer, 1775), N. c. sanane ssp. n., from the Indonesian island of Buru is described and illustrated. It is compared with nominotypical cyanea (TL: “West-Indiën” [= West Indies]; recte: “Oost-Indiën” [= East Indies]) and N. c. obiana (Fruhstorfer, 1915) (TL: Obi). All eight currently recognised Moluccan subspecies of N. cyanea, including N. c. sanane ssp. n., are illustrated and a map depicting their distribution in the Moluccas is presented. Keywords: Lepidoptera; Lycaenidae; Nacaduba cyanea sanane; new taxon; Indonesia; Maluku; Buru Island W. John Tennent*, Division of Insects, Department of Life Sciences, Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, United Kingdom. [email protected] M. Eulàlia Gassó Miracle, Collection Manager Entomological collections— Lepidoptera, Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Darwinweg 2, 2333 CR Leiden, The Netherlands. [email protected] Introduction range, N. cyanea occurs in a number of described The polyommatine lycaenid butterflyNacaduba subspecies. The type locality (TL) of nominotypi- cyanea (Cramer, 1775) occurs from the Indonesian cal cyanea was said by Cramer (1775: 120) to be islands of Flores and Timor, through the Moluccas the “West Indies”, but as Rothschild (1915: 140) and New Guinea, to the Bismarck, Louisiade and pointed out, its correct provenance was the East Solomons archipelagos, and northeastern Australia. Indies. This paper deals with N. cyanea on the Its appearance, in particular an apparent mimetic Indonesian islands of Maluku (see map, Fig. 34 relationship with other polyommatine lycaenids, re- below), where seven previously described subspecies sulted in historical placement with several different are recognised: nominotypical cyanea from Ambon, genera until Hirowatari (1992) finally placed it in Seram and associated islands (Figs 1–4); N. c. Nacaduba Moore, [1881] on the basis of male and obiana (Fruhstorfer, 1915) (TL: Obi) (Figs 5–8); female genital structure. In the west of the species’ N. c. pindus (Felder & Felder, 1865) (TL: Ternate) Tijdschrift voor Entomologie 159: 81–88, Figs 1–34. [ISSN 0040-7496]. brill.com/tve © Nederlandse Entomologische Vereniging. Published by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden. Published 1 November 2016. DOI 10.1163/22119434-15902001 *Corresponding author Downloaded from Brill.com09/26/2021 05:20:54AM via free access <UN> 82 Tijdschrift voor Entomologie, volume 159, 2016 Figs 1–4. N. c. cyanea. – 1, ♂ upper side (Seram); 2, ditto, under side; 3, ♀, upper side (Seram); 4, ditto, under side. Figs 5–8. N. c. obiana. – 5, ♂ upper side (Obi); 6, ditto, under side; 7, ♀, upper side (Obi); 8, ditto, under side. Downloaded from Brill.com09/26/2021 05:20:54AM via free access <UN> Tennent & Miracle: A new subspecies of Nacaduba cyanea 83 Figs 9–12. N. c. pindus. – 9, ♂ upper side (Bacan); 10, ditto, under side; 11, ♀, upper side (Bacan); 12, ditto, under side. from Halmahera, Bacan and other islands of North smaller series (1 ♂, 7 ♀) of the same butterfly was Maluku (Figs 9–12); N. c. epicoritus (Boisduval, subsequently identified in the Natural History Mu- 1832) (TL: “New Guinea”) from the western part seum (BMNH), London; the BMNH specimens of the New Guinea mainland and outlying islands at were associated with an historical drawer label sug- least as far west as Gebe, and including Waigeo and gesting “sanane Toxopeus” to which an annotation: Aru (Figs 13–16); N. c. illustris (Röber, 1886) (TL: “manuscript name?” was apparently added at some Kei islands) (Figs 17–20); N. c. smaragdus (Druce & later date. The male specimen bears an additional Bethune-Baker, 1893) (TL: Wetar) from Wetar and label, in Toxopeus’ handwriting “Pepliphorus cyanea Dammer islands (Figs 21–24); and N. c. carissima sanane Tox. ♂ Det. Tox. 1930”; one of the females (Grose Smith & Kirby, 1895) (TL: Pura) from Flores bears a similar label. During subsequent research, a and Timor northeast along the chain of islands from further series of 4 ♂, 1 ♀ from Buru was recognised which there are few (in most cases no) records, as far in a private collection. as Tanimbar (Figs 25–28). So far as the authors are The presence of the Toxopeus labels suggests aware, there are no records of Nacaduba cyanea from that whilst Toxopeus clearly intended to describe the Sula Islands. this Buru cyanea as subspecies sanane, the name was In addition to these seven described geographi- never published, and it remains a manuscript name. cal races, a series (5 ♂, 12 ♀) of a distinctive form This is rectified here. N. c. sanane ssp. n. is described of N. cyanea from the Moluccan island of Buru and compared with the most phenotypically and in the Amsterdam Zoological Museum collection geographically proximate taxa: N. c. obiana and (Zoologisch Museum Amsterdam, ZMA), recently nominotypical cyanea. The other Moluccan subspe- combined with the collections of the Naturalis Bio- cies are also illustrated, and a map depicting distribu- diversity Center (RMNH), Leiden, is unnamed. A tion of N. cyanea in the region is presented (Fig. 34). Downloaded from Brill.com09/26/2021 05:20:54AM via free access <UN> 84 Tijdschrift voor Entomologie, volume 159, 2016 Figs 13–16. N. c. epicoritus. – 13, ♂ upper side (Waigeo); 14, ditto, under side; 15, ♀, upper side (Waigeo); 16, ditto, under side. Figs 17–20. N. c. illustris. – 17, upper side (Kei); 18, ditto, under side; 19, , upper side (Kei); 20, ditto, ♂ Downloaded♀ from Brill.com09/26/2021 05:20:54AM under side. via free access <UN> Tennent & Miracle: A new subspecies of Nacaduba cyanea 85 Figs 21–24. N. c. smaragdus. – 21, ♂ upper side (Wetar); 22, ditto, under side; 23, ♀, upper side (Wetar); 24, ditto, under side. Figs 25–28. N. c. carissima. – 25, upper side (Pura); 26, ditto, under side; 27, , upperside (Pura); 28, ditto, ♂ Downloaded♀ from Brill.com09/26/2021 05:20:54AM under side. via free access <UN> 86 Tijdschrift voor Entomologie, volume 159, 2016 Nacaduba cyanea sanane Tennent & Gassó May [19]22, C.F. & J. Pratt / Pepliphorus cyanea Miracle ssp. n. sanane ♀ Tox[opeus] Det[ermined] Tox[opeus], Figs 29–33 1930 / Joicey Bequest, Brit[ish] Mus[eum] 1934–120; 5 ♀, 23. 22. Lek Soela, Coast, Buru, Type material. Holotype, ♂, Indonesia, Buru, Feb[ruary]–March 1922, C.F. & J. Pratt / Joicey Be- S[outh] Coast, May [19]22, C.F. & J. Pratt / Pep- quest, Brit[ish] Mus[eum] 1934–120; 1 ♀, 23. 22. liphorus cyanea sanane ♂ Tox[opeus] Det[ermined] En Boloro, Buru, 1670 f[ee]t, March 1922, C.F. Tox[opeus], 1930 / Joicey Bequest, Brit[ish] & J. Pratt / Joicey Bequest, Brit[ish] Mus[eum] Mus[eum] 1934–120 (BMNH). Paratypes (9 ♂ 20 1934–120 (all BMNH); 1 ♂, Mngesawain, north ♀): 1 ♀, Kako Tagalago, Central Buru, 2700 f[ee]t, of Tifu (Station 4), Buru, 2700 ft, 22.i.1922, leg. Figs 29–33. N. c. sanane. ssp. n. – 29, ♂ HOLOTYPE (BMNH), labels; 30, ditto, upper side; 31, ditto, under side; 32, ♀ PARATYPE (ZMA.INS.1262548), upper side; 33, ditto, under side. Downloaded from Brill.com09/26/2021 05:20:54AM via free access <UN> Tennent & Miracle: A new subspecies of Nacaduba cyanea 87 L.J. Toxopeus (ZMA.INS.1262547); 1 ♀, Mnge- of the female are broader in both nominotypical sawain, north of Tifu (Station 4), Buru, 2700 ft, cyanea and N. c. obiana. On the under side, the distal 31.i.1922, leg. L.J. Toxopeus (ZMA.INS.1262548); edge of the broad marginal border extends into the 1 ♂, Mngesawain, north of Tifu (Station 4), white band in space 5 in both sexes of N. c. sanane; Buru, 2700 ft, 12.iv.1921, leg. A. Estrin (ZMA. this is a relatively trivial feature, but is present in INS.1262549); 1 ♂, Wa'Gatè, rocky coast (Sta- every specimen seen by the authors from Buru and tion 19), Buru, 29.xii.1921, leg. L.J. Toxopeus is absent in all specimens examined from any other (ZMA.INS.1262550); 1 ♂, Mngesawain, north of Moluccan locality. Tifu (Station 4), Buru, 2700 ft, 31.i.1922, leg. L.J. Toxopeus (ZMA.INS.1262551); 1 ♂, Wa'Gatè, Description rocky coast (Station 19), Buru, 5.i.1922, leg. L.J. Male: forewing length (holotype) 19.5 mm; fore- Toxopeus (ZMA.INS.1262552); 1 ♀, Wai Eno, wing dark sky blue with narrow brown outer and north of Tifu (Station 6), Buru, 1675 ft, early costal margin; median white patch extensive, cloud- iv.1921, leg. A. Estrin (ZMA.INS.1262553); 1 ed with scattered blue scales; hindwing dark sky blue ♀, Mngesawain, north of Tifu (Station 4), Buru, with narrow brown outer margin, broader at tornus; 2700 ft, 31.i.1922, leg. L.J. Toxopeus (ZMA. filamentous brown ‘tail’, white-tipped; whitemedian INS.1262554); 1 ♀, Nal'Besi, west of Rana Lake area forming band from outer to inner margin. (Station 9), Buru, 2350–2700 ft, 10.vi.1921, leg. Under side forewing with broad brown marginal L.J. Toxopeus (ZMA.INS.1262555); 1 ♀, EnBi- and costal border; outer margin with marginal and loro (Station 5a), Buru, 1675 ft, 26.ii.1922, leg. submarginal series of white lines enclosed in bor- L.J.