Subspecies Prosotas dubiosa dubiosa (Semper, 1879)

Small Purple Lineblue

Plebeius dubiosa Semper, G. 1879. Beitrag zur Rhopalocerenfauna von Australien. Journal des Museum Godeffroy, Hamburg V(14): 138-194 pls 8, 9 [dated 1878] [159].
Type data:
Lectotype BMNH ♂, Bowen, QLD (Bowen, Cooktown and Cape York, QLD, mentioned in original description)
Comment: Semper in the original description mentioned both sexes and three localities but no type; from Semper the type went to Druce and then to the Hill Museum and then the BMNH.
Type locality references:
Gabriel, A.G. 1932. Catalogue of the Type Specimens of the Lepidoptera Rhopalocera in the Hill Museum. London : John Bale, Sons & Danielsson 40 pp. [33] (restricted the type locality to Bowen, QLD); Tite, G.E. 1963. A synonymic list of the genus Nacaduba and allied genera (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae). Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History) 13(4): 7-116 pl. 2 [97] (gave Queensland as the type locality); Parsons, M.J. 1998. The Butterflies of Papua New Guinea; their systematics and biology. San Diego : Academic Press 736 pp. [436] (gave Bowen, QLD, as the type locality).
Lycaena conjungens Lucas, T.P. 1889. Six new species of Rhopalocera. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland vi(4): 155-161 [160].
Type data:
Syntype(s) SAMA ♂ ♀, Townsvillle to Brisbane, QLD (designated in original description)
Comment: Lucas in the original description mentioned both sexes but not a type.
Lycaena mackayensis Miskin, W.H. 1890. Descriptions of hitherto undescribed Australian Lepidoptera (Rhopalocera) principally Lycaenidae. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 2 5(1): 29-43 [publication date: Anon. 1929. List showing dates of publication of parts of the Proceedings for each year. Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W. Index to vols 1–50 (1875–1925)] [35, 36].
Type data:
Syntype(s) QM T.12416 ♂, Mackay, QLD (designated in original description).
Comment: Miskin in the original description did not indicate the number of specimens described; Hancock, D.L. 1995. The butterfly types of W. H. Miskin in the Queensland Museum (Lepidoptera). Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 38(2): 519–528 [524] (referred to a syntype and gave type specimen information).
Type locality references:
Hancock, D.L. 1995. The butterfly types of W. H. Miskin in the Queensland Museum (Lepidoptera). Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 38(2): 519-528.

Taxonomic Decision for Synonymy

Waterhouse, G.A. 1903. Notes on Australian Rhopalocera: Lycaenidae. Part III—Revisional. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 28(1): 132-275, pls 1-3 [229] (synonymy of conjungens and dubiosa)
Hancock, D.L. 1995. The butterfly types of W. H. Miskin in the Queensland Museum (Lepidoptera). Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 38(2): 519-528 [524]
Edwards, E.D. 1996. Lycaenidae. pp. 249-254, 360-363 in Nielsen, E.S., Edwards, E.D. & Rangsi, T.V. (eds). Checklist of the Lepidoptera of Australia. Monographs on Australian Lepidoptera. Collingwood : CSIRO Publishing Vol. 4 xiv 529 pp. & CD-ROM. [253]

Distribution

States

New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia

Extra Distribution Information

Australian Endemic.

Note that conversion of the original AFD map of states, drainage basins and coastal and oceanic zones to IBRA and IMCRA regions may have produced errors. The new maps will be reviewed and corrected as updates occur. The maps may not indicate the entire distribution. See further details below.

IBRA

NSW, NT, Qld, WA: Arnhem Coast (ARC), Arnhem Plateau (ARP), Brigalow Belt North (BBN), Brigalow Belt South (BBS), Central Arnhem (CA), Central Kimberley (CK), Central Mackay Coast (CMC), Cape York Peninsula (CYP), Daly Basin (DAB), Darwin Coastal (DAC), Desert Uplands (DEU), Dampierland (DL), Einasleigh Uplands (EIU), Gulf Fall and Uplands (GFU), Gulf Coastal (GUC), Gulf Plains (GUP), Mount Isa Inlier (MII), Northern Kimberley (NK), NSW North Coast (NNC), Ord Victoria Plain (OVP), Pine Creek (PCK), Sydney Basin (SB), South East Corner (SEC), South Eastern Queensland (SEQ), Tiwi Cobourg (TIW), Victoria Bonaparte (VB), Wet Tropics (WT)