Parnassius simonius

Parnassius simonius is a high-altitude butterfly which is found only in the Pamir Mountains of Central Asia. The type locality is Aram-Kunghei, Zaalaisky Mountains, Kyrgyzstan. It is a member of the snow Apollo genus (Parnassius) of the swallowtail family, Papilionidae.

Parnassius simonius
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Papilionidae
Genus:	Parnassius
Species:	P. simonius
Binomial name
Parnassius simonius Staudinger, 1889

P. simonius is found on slopes at 3,400-4,500 m flying in July. The larva is associated with Lagotis decumbens and Veronica luetkeana.

Identification

P. simo differs from P. simonius by the upper hindwing having its submarginal band represented by a discontinuous row of arrow-like teeth and from P. boedromius, by the upper hindwing submarginal band being smoothly dentate (tooth like).

Subspecies

• Parnassius simonius simonius
• Parnassius simonius grayi Avinoff, 1916
• Parnassius simonius nigrificatus Kreuzberg, 1986
• Parnassius simonius taldicus Gundorov, 1991^[1]