Parnassius glacialis

Parnassius glacialis, the glacial Apollo or Japanese clouded Apollo, is a high-altitude butterfly found in Japan, eastern China and Korea. It is a member of the snow Apollo genus (Parnassius) of the swallowtail family (Papilionidae).[1]

Glacial Apollo
Paratype of P. g. shikokuensis from Isizuchi, Shikoku, Japan
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Genus: Parnassius
Species:
P. glacialis
Binomial name
Parnassius glacialis
Butler, 1866
In Mount Ryōzen, Japan

Description

It is much larger than Parnassius stubbendorfi of which it was once considered a subspecies. The blackish grey central spot of the cell is sometimes connected with the apical cell-spot by fuscous dusting along the sides of the cell, and the submarginal band of the forewing is more or less distinct and complete. Abdominal area of hindwing deep black as far as the cell, clothed with white hairs; on and along the veins blackish dusting. Collar, coxae and abdomen laterally clothed with yellow or reddish yellow hairs. Underside of wings slightly yellow. In some Japanese specimens (from Hakodate) the cell-spots and the submarginal band of the forewing have entirely disappeared, or are only very feebly indicated. [2]

Classification

There are fifteen subspecies. P. glacialis has been treated as a subspecies of Parnassius stubbendorfi but this is disproved by Takashi et al. 2001 who show that the subspecies of glacialis from Korea and Japan may be one species while those from mainland China another.

For a list of subspecies types in the British Museum (Natural History), see Ackery, P. R. (1973) A list of the type-specimens of Parnassius (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) in the British Museum (Natural History). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) Entomology 29 (1) (9.XI.1973): 1—35, 1 pl. online here

Range

It is found in eastern China, Korea and Japan.

Status

This butterfly is quite common but threatened by urbanisation in some areas.

Identification

The Parnassius species of butterflies are often hard to identify and can sometimes only be identified by dissection of the genitalia. Ackery, P.R. (1975) provides a key available online.[3]

Cited references
  1. D'Abrera, Bernard, 1990 Butterflies of the Holarctic Region: Papilionidae, Pieridae, Danaidae and Satyridae (Partim) (Butterflies of the World) Hill House Publishers ISBN 0646012029
  2. Stichel in Seitz, 1906 (Parnassius). Die Groß-Schmetterlinge der Erde. Die Groß-Schmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes. Die palaearktischen Tagfalter, Stuttgart.
  3. Ackery PR (1975) A guide to the genera and species of Parnassiinae (Lepidoptera:Papilionidae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) (Ent.) 31, 4 pdf
  • Takashi Yagi, Toru Katoh, Anton Chichvarkhin, Tsutomu Shinkawa and Keiichi Omoto,2001 “Molecular phylogeny of butterflies Parnassius glacialis and P. stubbendorfii at various localities in East Asia” Genes Genet. Syst. Vol. 76 229-234

Other references
  • Nemoto T & Inomata T, 1994 Geographical and individual variations of the genus Parnassius Latreille, 1804: Parnassius stubbendorfii Ménétriès, 1848 8 pp 117–132; col pl 56-63; fig 43-46; stapled series eds: Ohya A & Inomata T;in: Illustrations of selected insects in the world [A, Lepidoptera].

Further reading
gollark: No, but I can probably grab one.
gollark: The pumpkin?
gollark: *is interested in API-coded whatever*
gollark: I only have 7 reds left. This is disastrous.
gollark: I bet there'll be at least one halloweenling APed over the week.

See also
  • Funet Taxonomy, distribution
  • Images
  • Takashi Yagi1, Toru Katoh, Anton Chichvarkhin,Tsutomu Shinkawa and Keiichi Omoto Molecular phylogeny of butterflies Parnassius glacialis and P. stubbendorfii at various localities in East Asia
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