Yamfly

Yamfly

Loxura atymnus atymnus ( Cramer ) LYCAENIDAE

Adult upperside orange red. FW with broad black apex and border. Border narrow or absent in the HW which tapers to a fairly strong tail. HW darker in female. Underside orange yellow, paler with faint brownish transverse bands. Wingspan 36-42mm.

Resident of bamboo jungles, occurring in low land forests and wastelands. Keeps to sheltered forest edges and avoids open places. Flies high above the ground, in short weak flights and then alights immediately on a nearby low bush. Attracted to homopteran insects, especially those found on its larval host plants.

Larva

Green with faint ridges along the back.

Feeds on young shoots of Yam, smilax spp., etc. attended on by red ants.

Distribution

India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indo- china, and the sunda islands.