Common Butterflies of Sri Lanka

Common Banded Awl Hasora chromus
Water Snow Flat Tagiades litigiosa
S LC S VU
Hesperiidae
Its hind wing is angled at the lower portion of the outer margin. It is fairly indistinct
because the wing has a long fold commencing from that point to the base of the
wing. The upper side is totally brown in males with a sex brand on the forewing.
The female has two white patches on interspace 2 and 3 of the forewing which is
also visible on the underside. Females without these patches are also present. The
underside is brown with a thin, diffused straight white band on the hind wing. Just
beyond this band, it has a black patch within the fold which is partially visible to the
outside. The forewing is slightly washed out in white scales distally. Sometimes it has
a bluish tint in the basal area.
Its flight consists of fast skips and jerks, often resting upside down with closed wings
under leaves. It feeds on the flowers of bushes and woody vines. They gather on
the flowers of Derris scandens. It is always hurries from one flower to another. Males
engage in mud sipping. It is active even early in the morning and usually does not
come out to feed during mid-day except in cloudy weather. It is a migratory species.
It needs gloomy habitats to rest and open habitats to feed.
The sexes look alike. It is brownish black on the upper side with a large white area on
the lower parts of the hind wing. The size of this patch varies individually. The number
of white spots on the forewing also varies. It has marginal black spots on the white
area. The black spot at the margin of the white and brown areas is larger than the
other spots. The brown on the underside is lighter and has more white on the hind
wing. The pattern is similar to that on the upper side. The abdomen is pure white. Its
thorax and head are pure white ventrally, and dark brown dorsally.
It rests on the underside of leaves and keeps its wings spread flat. It comes out to feed
on flowers in the morning and afternoon and keeps its wings spread flat even when
feeding. It cannot suck nectar from cup-shaped flowers due to this behaviour but is
able to exploit suspending flowers. Its jerking flight is fast but not as speedy as the
Ceylon Snow Flat. It is a migrant.
It can be found in high abundance in the hills. Its numbers are lower than those of the
Ceylon Snow Flat at low elevations. It requires a mixture of vegetation types as the
previous species, The Common Banded Awl.
Hesperiidae
LFPs: Millettia pinnata (uÕ=,a lr|), Derris scandens (l, je,a).
LFPs: Dioscorea koyamae (lsß f.dak,), D. oppositifolia (f.dak,), D. spicata (f.dak,).
126 Common Butterflies of Sri Lanka
Common Butterflies of Sri Lanka 127