<< Previous Next >>

Horaga selina, a rarity


Horaga selina, a rarity
Photo Information
Copyright: Alan Cassidy (accassidy) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 103 W: 79 N: 297] (1070)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 1985-03
Categories: Insects
Camera: Pentax LX, Pentax F 100/2.8 macro
Exposure: f/5.6, 1/60 seconds
Details: (Fill) Flash: Yes
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Butterflies of Indonesia + Brunei, Butterflies of Sulawesi [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2008-01-24 1:49
Viewed: 526
Points: 16
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Horaga selina

The classification of Old World "Hairstreak" Butterflies is now quite well established, thanks mostly to the work of the late Colonel John Eliot with whom I corresponded intermittently for the last 20 years of his life and whom I was privileged to meet occasionally in the British Museum's butterfly department. In the New World, similar work is under way, but not yet complete. "Hairstreaks" generally, the Theclini form one Tribe of the sub-Family Lycaeninae. The Horagiti is a sub-Tribe of the Theclini but contains only one Genus Horaga Moore, 1881.

Butterflies of the Oriental Region, Bernard D'Abrera lists 9 species of Horaga of which 4 have extremely limited range. H. araotina Evans is known only from a single specimen from Pulau Angsa on the West Coast of the Malay Peninsula, described in 1933. Another species, natsumiae Hayashi, 1984, is known only from marinduque in the Philippines. Third of the 4 endemics is H. rarasana Sonan, 1936 which lives only in Taiwan.

The fourth endemic and extremely rare species is H. selina described from a single specimen by Henley Grose-Smith in 1896. This is the species pictured here; this individual is a male. Several specimens of selina are now known from Central and Southern Sulawesi, but up until the late '70s, Grose-Smith's original holotype in London was a unique specimen, just as araotina remains to this day.

In 1985 I found a single individual of selina specimen during a four-month expedition in Northern Sulawesi, expanding its known range to most of the island, and was able to photograph it in the natural state, the first and last time this has been done, as far as I can establish. There are a few pictures of selina on the web, but all are of the very few museum specimens.

The story of finding this butterfly is quite a long one. I was ridge-walking one afternoon in the Dumoga-Bone National Park in Sulawesi Utara and caught a glimpse of a hairstreak leaving a flower on a tree beside a clearing. Unfortunately, the flower was about 6 or 7 metres above the ground and well out of reach. I waited but it did not reappear. I returned to the same spot the next day, but earlier, and constructed a wooden tripod that I could climb. This got me to within a metre or so of the flower, which received its sunlight from about mid-day to perhaps 2.30 in the afternoon.

I sat on top of my personal tripod for about 2 hours before the butterfly visited. I do not know if it was the same as the one I saw the day before, which I had not been able to identify from the distance. But this new visitor was this male of Horaga selina and this picture is what I have to prove it.

So not only is this the first time this species has been seen on Trek Nature. This is also the first ever public showing of this picture. It has been scanned from a 35mm slide, resized and sharpened for TN. It may not be the most perfect technical photograph, but it is one of my most treasured memories.
XOTAELE, horia, Argus, marcellr, pvs, ramthakur, batu has marked this note useful
Only registered TrekNature members may rate photo notes.
Add Critique [Critiquing Guidelines] 
Only registered TrekNature members may write critiques.
Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To batu: H selinaaccassidy 1 01-29 12:03
To horia: Horaga selinaaccassidy 1 01-24 03:40
You must be logged in to start a discussion.

Critiques [Translate]

Hola Alan.
Con buenos detalles.
Buen bg y agradable presentación.
Saludos, JL.

  • Great 
  • horia Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2043 W: 212 N: 3651] (12150)
  • [2008-01-24 3:26]
  • [+]

Hi Alan

What a fantastic story and what honor for us to be the first ones to ever see this picture and this extremely rare species! Thank you so much for posting it!
It's rather hard these days to find such passionate people about animals like you. Usually us biologists are the only was "crazy" enough to undergo studies in the harshest environments in order to know more and eventually protect animals. It's very nice to hear that people with completely other professions have this love towards nature and will go a long way to try and get something valuable.
This picture is definitely a very valuable thing, since as you mentioned, there are hardly any photos of this species in a natural habitat.
So i guess your entire build for that tripod and 2 hour wait paid off, huh? ;)
Great work! Thanks for sharing!

Horia
Even if the picture isn't the ultimate best, the main characteristics of the animal are visible and its colors and patterns are very beautiful.

  • Great 
  • Argus Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2487 W: 132 N: 7075] (22101)
  • [2008-01-24 4:08]

Hello Alan,
Congratulations on this remarkable photo of a species that was extremely rare and local 25 years ago. One wonders whether it has become extinct since. As you say the photo is not the best but one can definitely ID it as H. selina and that is what makes this a unique contribution to TN.
Thanks for sharing it,
Regards, Ivan

Hi Alan, elegant butterfly with splendid details, good colors and excellent sharpness, very well done, ciao Silvio

Ciao Alan,
complimenti sinceri per il tuo importante contributo su TN.
Cercando sul web altre notizie su questa specie, ho trovato questo importante contributo sui lepidotteri di Sulawesi, al quale vedo tu hai partecipato.
Credo sia molto importante divulgare, attraverso TN e più in generale, attraverso il Web, conoscenze che per troppo tempo sono rimaste di esclusivo dominio degli specialisti.
Grazie,
Marcello

  • Great 
  • pvs Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1128 W: 254 N: 2428] (11041)
  • [2008-01-24 8:18]

Hi Alan,

A special upload of this rare and maybe now extncted butterfly,I can imagine that you treasure this picture,thanks for sharing this picture and informative note,

Regards,
Paul

Hello Alan,
First of all, I wish to thank you for looking at my picture of a Bee Wolf and writing your kind critique on it.
Before looking at your picture of this rarest of the rare butterfly you shot in Indonesia way back in 1985, I read your note carefully.
I particularly enjoyed reading your account of how you shot this male member of the rare species with lot of patience and perseverance.
The scan from the slide is excellent in quality. The angle of exposure facilitates a full view of its outer wing, though I would keep wondering how the other side looks.
Thanks for sharing this first ever picture of Horaga salina and best regards.
Ram

  • Great 
  • batu Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 987 W: 282 N: 3225] (10662)
  • [2008-01-29 11:38]
  • [+]

Hello Alan,
thank you for posting this picture from your pioneering work in Sulawesi Utara. With respect to the described circumstances, you obtained an admirable picture of the species. The colour pattern is nicely shown.
Vane-Wright & de Jong (2003) do not mention H. selina from S. Utara, but only from
central and south Sulawesi so that I have to update the distribution data.
There are no further informations given (only name and limited data on distribution - the same is true for Horaga sohmai Osada, 2001).
Best wishes,
Peter

Calibration Check
















0123456789ABCDEF