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LEPIDOPTERA

Neope niphonica Butler, 1881
   Neope niphonica  Butler, 1881

· TYPE LOCALITY. "Japon".

· RANGE. Confined to Japan, Sakhalin and the S. Kuriles.

· DISTRIBUTION AND VARIATION. S. Sakhalin, the S. Kuriles.

· TAXONOMIC NOTES. Both Neope taxa are variable and show no marked morpho-logical differences; possibly they should rather be regarded as ecological forms.

· HABITAT AND BIOLOGY. Flying in the mountains in June. In Japan, it occurs in deciduous forests at 800-1,000 m a.s.l. from May to August in two generations. Host plant in Japan (Fukuda et al., 1983): Sasa palmata. Adults are obligatory nectar- or sap-feeders. Males are territorial in behaviour.

· SIMILAR SPECIES. N. goschkevitschae: UNF median band lightened inside, with a median bar which makes it look "8-shaped".

Photo and text: Guide to the BUTTERFLIES OF RUSSIA and adjacent territories Volume 1. PENSOFT, Sofia - Moscow. 1997