Ganisa spp. Walker, 1855 -

Taxonomic Information

Ganisa Walker, 1855 species known from India. 
Ganisa plana Walker, 1855. India. 
Ganisa postica Walker, 1855. India; Sri Lanka (TL). 
Ganisa similis Moore, 1884. NE India.

Ganisa plana Walker, 1855 and Ganisa postica Walker, 1855 are best separated by comparing male genitalia and molecular phylogeny. 

Wolfgang et al (2009) mentions the Ganisa postica species group and the Ganisa similis species group. 
Ganisa postica species group: Distributed across the Indian subcontinent. Pale greyish-brown species with rounded wings in males, on aver- age of smaller wingspan than the Ganisa similis species group. 
Ganisa similis species group: Distributed across the eastern Himalaya in India. Similar blackish-grey species with a generally more rectangular, sometimes nearly falcate fw. apex in males.

Photo Gallery and Species Biology

Note on species group: Ganisa postica Walker, 1855 and Ganisa plana Walker, 1855 are both valid taxon (included as separate species in the Global Bombycoidea checklist, 2018). This species group is very variable and doubtfully separated through photographs. They are difficult to separate without examining genitalia and comparing molecular phylogeny. Barlow (1982) states that postica is largely found is S. India and Sri Lanka, while plana is found in N. India, including the Himalayas. The member of this genus from India, Ganisa similis, is found in NE India, has an oblique dark diffused band on forewing, and is its forewings are generally more falcate (even more falcate in female) than postica and plana.   

StateJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecNo date
Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Andhra Pradesh1
Arunachal Pradesh
Assam1
Bihar
Chandigarh
Chhattisgarh
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
Daman & Diu
Delhi
Goa1
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu and Kashmir
Jharkhand
Karnataka
Kerala11
Lakshadweep
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra21221
Manipur
Meghalaya1
Mizoram
Nagaland
Odisha
Paschimbanga1
Pondicherry
Punjab
Rajasthan
Sikkim
Tamil Nadu11
Tripura
Uttar Pradesh
Uttarakhand4
West Bengal
Total12625221
Ganisa spp.: Jasminum arborescens, Jasminum coarctatum (Oleaceae) (Robinson et al. 2010).
  1. Ganisa postica Walker, 1855. List Spec. Lepid. Insects Colln Br. Mus. 5: 1190; TL: Sri Lanka. Text at https://archive.org/stream/listofspecimenso46brit#page/1190/mode/1up
  2. Barlow, H.S. 1982. An introduction to the moths of S.E. Asia. Malayan Nature Society, Kuala Lumpur. Pp. 305. Pg. 191, taxonomic note no 191 on Ganisa similis, Ganisa postica and Ganisa plana.
  3. Nässig, W. A., Ignatyev, N. N & T. J. Witt (2009). Two new species of the genus Ganisa Walker, 1855 from Sulawesi and Flores, Indonesia (Lepidoptera: Eupterotidae). Entomofauna. Band 30, Heft 26: 453-464. 
  4. https://v3.boldsystems.org/index.php/Taxbrowser_Taxonpage?taxid=379245 for postica.
  5. https://www.mothsofborneo.com/part-3/eupterotidae/eupterotidae_2_1.php






 

Page citation

Anonymous 2024. Ganisa spp. Walker, 1855 – . In Sondhi, S., Y. Sondhi, R.P. Singh, P. Roy and K. Kunte (Chief Editors). Butterflies of India, v. 3.72. Published by the Indian Foundation for Butterflies. URL: https://moths.ncbs.res.in/ganisa-spp, accessed 2024/03/28.