Parantica aglea

Glassy tiger
Underside
Upperside
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Nymphalidae
Genus:	Parantica
Species:	P. aglea
Binomial name
Parantica aglea (Stoll, 1782)
Synonyms
Danais aglea

Parantica aglea, commonly known as the glassy tiger,^[1][2] is a butterfly found in the Indomalayan realm. The species is a member of the Danainae subfamily of the Nymphalidae family.^[1][2]

Two subspecies are recognized, but neither form is consistent in markings or habitat. In the British Museum's collection, there are specimens of true Parantica aglea aglea from Myanmar, and others, inseparable from typical Parantica aglea melanoides, from Mysore.^[3]

The ground color of this species is fuliginous black with subhyaline bluish-white streaks and spots. In the forewing, the 11th vein is anastomosed with the 12th.

Additionally, the first interspace of the upperside forewing has two comparatively long, broad streaks united at the base, which truncate exteriorly. The cell contains a very broad, somewhat clavate streak traversed by two fine black lines. Interspaces 2 and 3 display basal spots, an irregular discal series of three spots and two elongated streaks, and a subterminal series of spots. These two series curve inwards opposite the apex of the wing, with the latter continued along the apical half of the costa. Finally, in the interspaces of much smaller spots, a terminal row appears in pairs.

In the hindwing, interspaces 1a and 1b exhibit broad long streaks from the base. Interspace 1 and the cell each contain two streaks united at the base, and the pair in the cell have a short streak obliquely between their apices, in an outwardly radiating series of broad, elongate, inwardly pointed spots in interspaces 2–8, followed by somewhat irregular rows of subterminal and terminal spots. The underside is similar, though the markings and spots are sometimes a little ill-defined and blurred.^[3]

The Antennae are black, the head and thorax are black spotted with white, the abdomen is blackish brown and ochraceous beneath. A male secondary sex-mark is present in form 2.^[3][4]

The differences between the northern and eastern forms are as follows: wings on the whole longer and narrower; hyaline markings, especially in interspace 1 of forewing and in cells of both forewing and hindwing, much broader. In many specimens the black ground colour in these spaces is reduced to a mere slender black line enclosed in the subhyaline marking. On the underside the streaks are often much blurred and diffuse.^[3]

The wingspan is 70–100mm.

Subspecies Parantica aglea aglea is found in Sri Lanka and the Western Ghats north to Pune and the Niligiris.

Parantica aglea melanoides is distributed in the Himalayas from Kashmir to Nepal, in Sylhet and Chittagong regions of Bangladesh, in Assam of India, in Myanmar, and in Tenasserim.^[3]

The dogbanes Vincetoxicum bracteatum and Vincetoxicum dalzellii both serve as food plants for the catterpillers.^{[citation needed]}

White pearl-shaped eggs are laid on the undersides of leaves. They hatch after about three days.^[5]

Dark claret brown, two round chrome-yellow spots on each segment, with scattered smaller bluish-white spots between, clustering into and forming a conspicuous line along the sides; legs and ventral surface purplish black, the tentacula, placed as usual on the 3rd and 12th segments, claret brown.^[3]

The plants that host Parantica aglea larva include, Calotropis gigantea, Ceropegia bulbosa, Ceropegia lawii, Cryptolepis dubia, Vincetoxicum indicum, and Vincetoxicum flexuosum.^[5]

The pupae of Parantica aglea are green and spotted with silver, black, and gold; their shape is very tight behind the thorax.^[3]

• 
  Egg
• 
  Larva (first instar)
• 
  Larva (last instar)
• 
  Pre-pupal Larva
• 
  Pupa
• 
  Newly-emerged butterfly

The species is present in the Western Ghats mountains, in north-east India, Sri Lanka and the Malay peninsula.^[3]

• Danainae
• Nymphalidae
• List of butterflies of India
• List of butterflies of India (Nymphalidae)

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