Typical Sergeant

Description:

Nymphalidae; Nymphalinae; Limenitidini; Athyma kasa kasa Moore 1858. Philippine Lepidoptera has this to say about the Tribe Limenitidini: "Formerly the Nymphalidae subfamily Limenitidinae, which includes the admirals and relatives. The common names of many species and genera reference military ranks or titles of nobility (namely those from former tribe Adoliadini, e.g., count, duke, earl, and marquis), in reference to these butterflies' large size, bold patterns, and dashing flight. In particular, the light stripe running lengthwise across the wings of many Limenitidini has reminded earlier authors of officers' (e.g. admiral, commander, commodore) shoulder marks and epaulets."

Habitat:

This Typical Sergeant was spotted in roadside foliage in a sparsely populated area. The road, at this point was about 50 ft. above sea level and rises steeply, eventually reaching an elevation of around 200 ft. The number and variety of butterflies which can be seen in this area increases dramatically as higher elevations are reached, especially early in the morning. This specimen was spotted in the exact same location as my spotting number 1552727514.

Notes:

The specimen shown here was, obviously, in poor condition and after I took the first photo, it took flight and attempted to escape. I'm pretty certain I must have startled it. It did not get far, just a short distance and it landed clumsily at the edge of the road. I took some more pictures and moved on. When I passed by again on the way home, the poor creature was still there. So I had unintentionally witnessed its death. I did not insert these pictures or this narrative into my own catalogue, but I decided to show them here just to remind myself (and others) that the wilderness creatures we enjoy photographing and identifying have real lives, just like us and need us to do whatever we can to improve the environment which we share.