Ambulyx elwesi Druce, 1882, Entomologist's mon. Mag. 19: 17. Type locality: [India, West Bengal,] Darjiling [Darling].
Synonym. Ambulyx elwesi Druce, 1882.
Wingspan: 100mm. Superficially similar to a very dark Callambulyx rubricosa rubricosa but differing markedly in genital and other morphology. Frenulum present but reduced in length; retinaculum absent. Subapical pair of hindtibial spurs absent. Forewing upperside with distal two-thirds dark and proximal one-third green (turning brown in a humid atmosphere) and much paler. Hindwing upperside with deep pink basal area and a dark, almost black distal two-thirds in which a narrow lunate purple patch is discernible.
In Nepal at 2000-2500m altitude in oak-laurel forest (M. C. Allen, pers. obs. 1991).
In Thailand, May to July at 700-1000m altitude. Mid June in Nepal (M. C. Allen, pers. obs. 1991).
OVUM: Unknown
LARVA:
PUPA:
Larval hostplants. Unknown in the wild, but reared in captivity on Salix (Tomáš Melichar, pers. comm. 2017). Therefore, probably feeds on a tropical member of the Salicaceae.
Unknown.
China: Yunnan (Xishuangbanna, Mengla); Hainan (Qichacun; Maonaocun; Wuzhishan National Nature Reserve).
Northern Pakistan (Rafi et al., 2014), northern India (Smetacek, 2004b), Nepal, Bhutan (Irungbam & Irungbam, 2019), southwestern China, Burma/Myanmar, northern Thailand, northern Laos and central Vietnam (Le & Vu, 2024).
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