Number: 199
Family: Devadattidae
Genus: Devadatta
Species: Devadatta argyoides
Common name(s): Malayan Grisette
Synonyms: Tetraneura argyoides Selys, 1859
Habitat: A leafy (but boggy) road overflow area nr. HB HQ
Province(s) sighted: Hala-Bala Wildlife Sanctuary (Narathiwat)
Sightings (by me): 1 male 2 females
In flight (that I have seen): April
Species easily confused with: --
As with many species, Devadatta argyoides was one of those that seems locally common along the west of Thailand southwards and has just simply evaded my camera. However, even when I did come across it, I almost missed it as it was at a tiny overflow area at the bottom of the road at HQ. There was a tiny, but inaccessible trickle running through and it would appear that a few species were hanging on in there until the rains arrived. I also saw a solitary male and a female Prodasineura collaris, a male Cratilla metallica and a solitary male Tyriobapta torrida hanging around the concrete posts close by! There were also several males of an Idionyx sp. flitting about at a million miles an hour as dusk approached (but were way to fast to catch or ID). Anyway, at around 6.30am, I noticed a female perched on a twig just above the rotting leaves. I almost ignored it, but my brain took over and I tried to photograph it... damn!!! The lens had fogged up! I had to wait almost 30 minutes for it to clear. By then, the damsel had gone! Amazingly, I found another slightly further away and it was fairly easy to get shots though the lighting was terrible. I returned to the same place the following afternoon and was fortunate enough to spot the male, who was also quite happy to let me snap away! So, not bad for a pile of leaves!
The male
The male is very dull in appearance but does have a few flecks of blue on its abdomen.
I was also fortunate enough to capture the male with my fingers and could use (slightly) better lighting...
As with many species, Devadatta argyoides was one of those that seems locally common along the west of Thailand southwards and has just simply evaded my camera. However, even when I did come across it, I almost missed it as it was at a tiny overflow area at the bottom of the road at HQ. There was a tiny, but inaccessible trickle running through and it would appear that a few species were hanging on in there until the rains arrived. I also saw a solitary male and a female Prodasineura collaris, a male Cratilla metallica and a solitary male Tyriobapta torrida hanging around the concrete posts close by! There were also several males of an Idionyx sp. flitting about at a million miles an hour as dusk approached (but were way to fast to catch or ID). Anyway, at around 6.30am, I noticed a female perched on a twig just above the rotting leaves. I almost ignored it, but my brain took over and I tried to photograph it... damn!!! The lens had fogged up! I had to wait almost 30 minutes for it to clear. By then, the damsel had gone! Amazingly, I found another slightly further away and it was fairly easy to get shots though the lighting was terrible. I returned to the same place the following afternoon and was fortunate enough to spot the male, who was also quite happy to let me snap away! So, not bad for a pile of leaves!
The male
The male is very dull in appearance but does have a few flecks of blue on its abdomen.
The female
The female is very similar to the male but has a more robust abdomen. It is also fairly easy to approach, though by mid-morning they had disappeared.
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