Indra subspecies
P. i. shastensis, P. i. pygmaeus
| Range Map - P. i. shastensis Emmel &
Emmel) 1998, TL: McCloud Bridge Campground, CA (red) &
pygmaeus (Emmel, Emmel & Griffin) 1998, TL: Dead Mts, CA (blue) |
One of the three most recently described races (Systematics of Western North
American Butterflies, T.C. Emmel, editor, Mariposa Press, 1998) is
P. i. shastensis from northern
California.
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| P. i. shastensis adult male | shastensis 5th instar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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P. i. shastensis McCloud Branch of Lake Shasta, CA -- the TL |
Another of the three recently described races is P. i.
pygmaeus. As shown on the range map above, this race has
the most restricted range (as currently known) of any Indra subspecies. It is
found only in the higher portions of the Dead Mountains near Needles,
California.
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| P.i. pygmaeus (dark form) 5 cm forewing span. |
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P. i. pygmaeus adult. Like P. i. fordi, a characteristic of this race is small size. This specimen measures 2 1/16 inches across forewing tips. |
| P. i. fordi is found just 50 mi. to the SW
of pygmaeus, but they are phenotypically very
different. However, they are similar in size as illustrated in this photo.
pygmaeus (top) &
fordi P. i. fordi phenotypes regularly appear in the P. i. pygmaeus population. Both pygmaeus and fordi are restricted to the LFP C. panamintensis var. acutifolius. |
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In the Newberry Mts. of southern Nevada (10 air miles due N of the Dead Mts.) a larger phenotype similar to pygmaeus is found. These are illustrated in the photo to the left. It uses Lomatium parryi instead of C. panamintensis. Shown here for comparison are pygmaeus (top) and a Newberry Mts. specimens. |
