Parnassius acdestis is a high-altitude butterfly found in India. It is a member of the genus Parnassius of the swallowtail family, Papilionidae. The species was first described by Grigory Grum-Grshimailo in 1891.
Description Note: The wing pattern in Parnassius species is inconsistent and the very many subspecies and forms make identification problematic and uncertain. Structural characters derived from the genitalia, wing venation, sphragis and foretibial epiphysis are more, but not entirely reliable. The description given here is a guide only. For an identification key see P.R. Ackery (1975).Ackery P.R. (1975) A guide to the genera and species of Parnassiinae (Lepidoptera:Papilionidae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) (Entomology) 31, 4 pdf
Hindwing with very narrow marginal band, the submarginal spots isolated, small; the ultracellular costal spot of forewing continued by grey scaling, forming an s-shaped band.Stichel in Seitz, 1906 (Parnassius). Die Groß-Schmetterlinge der Erde. Die Groß-Schmetterlinge des palaearktischen Faunengebietes. Die palaearktischen Tagfalter, Stuttgart.
Subspecies Parnassius acdestis cerevisiae Weiss & Michel Parnassius acdestis cinerosus Stichel Parnassius acdestis felix Eisner Parnassius acdestis hades (Bryk) Parnassius acdestis imperatoides Weiss & Michel Parnassius acdestis irenaephis Bryk Parnassius acdestis ladakensis Avinoff, 1916 Parnassius acdestis lathonius Bryk Parnassius acdestis limitis Weiss & Michel Parnassius acdestis macdonardi Rothschild Parnassius acdestis manco Koiwaya Parnassius acdestis ohkuma Koiwaya Parnassius acdestis peeblesi Bryk Parnassius acdestis peshkei Eisner, 1933 Parnassius acdestis rupshuana Avinoff, 1916 Parnassius acdestis takedai Mikami & Sakakibara, 1988 Parnassius acdestis vogti (Bang-Haas) Parnassius acdestis yanae Huang, 1998
Range Kirghistan, Nepal, northern India (Jammu & Kashmir, Sikkim), western China, Sinkiang and Szechwan.
Status Very local. Rather rare. Not known to be threatened.
See also Papilionidae List of butterflies of India List of butterflies of India (Papilionidae)
References
Sakai S., Inaoka S., Toshiaki A., Yamaguchi S., Watanabe Y., (2002) The Parnassiology. The Parnassius Butterflies, A Study in Evolution, Kodansha, Japan. Weiss Jean-Claude, (1999) Parnassiinae of the World, Hillside Books, Canterbury, UK. ,
Further reading sv:Parnassius acdestis - Swedish Wikipedia provides further references and synonymy
External links NRM Holotype of Parnassius acdestis peeblesi Bryk, 1932.