Small Woodbrown butterfly rediscovered in Sikkim after 120 years

Researchers at the Sikkim University in Gangtok have rediscovered the Small Woodbrown butterfly species from Bakhim in Khanchendzonga National Park. The butterfly species was first discovered by a scientist named de Nicéville in 1887.

It is amongst the smallest members of the genus Lethe, with wings that are up to 50 millimeters long. Of the 41 species of Lethe that are found in India, 32 species are reported from Sikkim alone.

The study was done by Sailendra Dewan, Bhoj Kumar Acharya, and Sudeep Ghatani at the Department of Zoology of the Sikkim University in Gangtok, Sikkim. It was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Threatened Taxa bit.ly/2Dne0yK