About Hidari irava (Moore, 1857)
Hidari irava (Moore, 1857), commonly known as the coconut skipper, is a species of butterfly in the family Hesperiidae. It is distributed across southern Myanmar, Thailand, western Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and the Sula Islands, and is common nearly everywhere across Malacca, Sumatra, Java, and Bali. This species has a wingspan of 45–55 mm. The upper side of the wings is dark brown, with four typically arranged discal hyaline (transparent) spots: one in the cell, one below the cell in the submedian area, one between the median branches, and one positioned upwards and outwards from the third spot. A very small subapical spot is also often present. The underside of the wings is lighter, with a more reddish greyish-brown tone, and it often has several small, very indistinct scattered spots across the disc. The larva is dull leaf-green with dark longitudinal stripes and a brown head with darker markings. It develops between spun leaves of various palms, particularly Cocos species and sago palms. It pupates into a brown pupa that has a dark lateral line; the proboscis cover of this pupa does not extend to the abdominal end. Adult coconut skippers fly in the evening; during the day they rest in bamboo thickets and in the crowns of palms. Known larval host plants are Bambusa bamboo species and Cocos nucifera (coconut palm).
