Description Albulina pheretes

race lehana, moore

albulina pheretes, underside

male upperside purplish blue dark blue @ bases of wings. forewings , hindwings obscure, slender, black, anticiliary lines, followed full, snow-white cilia. underside grey, pale plumbeous brown on discs of wings, bases of both forewings , hindwings irrorated (sprinkled) bluish-green scales. forewing has narrow transverse black lunule on discocellulars , transverse curved discal series of 5 white spots, each spot centred black. hindwing has streak in cell, spot above near costa , discal series of 5 spots, of posterior 4 in oblique line directed outwards, , upper or fifth larger, placed further inwards above apex of cell. in type , few others discal spots 7 or 8 in number, , smaller in majority of specimens. antennae dark brown, shafts usual ringed white; head, thorax , abdomen clothed bluish hairs; palpi fringed black hairs, thorax , abdomen white.

the female similar male, on upperside ground colour rich brown, bases of wings blue. underside: ground colour , markings in male. antennae, head, thorax , abdomen similar of male latter 3 brown, not clothed bluish hairs.

the race has wingspan of 28–30 mm. found in western himalayas (ladakh, kashmir) @ elevations 8,000 12,000 feet (2,400 3,700 m).

race asiatica, elwes

forewing more pointed @ apex, termen straighter, wing altogether proportionately shorter in race lehana. other differences follows: underside of male has rich metallic dark blue, quite different purplish blue of parent form or of race lehana. underside has ground colour , markings similar of lehana, on forewing discal spots entirely absent or reduced 1 or two, while hindwing irrorated metallic greenish-blue scales two-thirds of length base. otherwise similar.

female has upperside in race lehana underside obsolescence of markings on forewing , irroration of metallic greenish-blue scales on hindwing in own male.

the race has wingspan of 25–27 mm. found in sikkim in chumbi valley, elevation of 12,000 15,000 feet (3,700 4,600 m).