Zaretis itys, (CRAMER, 1777)

Dias, Fernando Maia Silva, Janzen, Daniel, Hallwachs, Winnie, Chacón, Isidro, Willmott, Keith, Ortiz-Acevedo, Elena, Mielke, Olaf Hermann Hendrik & Casagrande, Mirna Martins, 2019, DNA barcodes uncover hidden taxonomic diversity behind the variable wing patterns in the Neotropical butterfly genus Zaretis (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Charaxinae), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 185, pp. 132-192 : 146-150

ZARETIS ITYS ( CRAMER, 1777)

( FIGS 7A–D, 15A, 16A,B, 19; SUPPORTING INFORMATION, APPENDIX S6)

Type material

Female lectotype of Papilio itys Cramer, 1777 with the following labels: / Surinam [e] Coll[ection] [C. van] Len[n]ep/ Felder Coll[ection]/ Lectotype / B.M. TYPE No. Rh 17307/ Papilio itys Cramer det. R . I. Vane-Wright 1972 LECTOTYPE #f/ ( NHMUK) .

Diagnosis

Zaretis itys , as with most species of the genus, is somewhat variable, but more-or-less distinctive. The species was recently redescribed and diagnosed by Dias et al. (2012), but that diagnosis focused on a comparison with one of the most similar species, Z. itylus , which is not sympatric with Z. itys . Zaretis itys is sympatric with Z. isidora , Z. strigosus , Z. hurin sp. nov. and Z. falcis in the Amazon basin and the Guianas. Males ( Fig. 7A, B) can be distinguished from the above species by the less-developed emargination of the inner margin at the forewing tornus. Females ( Fig. 7C, D) can be distinguished by the shape of the FW, with the outer margin always smooth and rounded, slightly falcate at the apex, and by the contrasting colour and pattern.

Discussion

Papilio itys Cramer, 1777 was the first taxon associated with Zaretis to be described and, therefore, is the preferred name for authors who follow a very conservative line and treat all other available names applied to Zaretis , with the exception of Z. syene and P. callidryas comb. nov., as junior subjective synonyms (e.g. Comstock, 1961; Vane-Wright, 1975). This species was recently circumscribed and discussed by Dias et al. (2012), recognizing Z. itys as a distinctive species of Amazonian distribution with distinctive characters. The species was described based on an unstated number of female specimens from Suriname. A single female from Lennep’s collection, source of many of Cramer’s specimens from Suriname, compares closely with Cramer’s original illustrations ( Cramer, 1777: plate 119, fig. F, G). This specimen was designated as a lectotype of P. itys Cramer, 1777 by Vane-Wright (1975) when he was reviewing the butterflies named by Gmelin. This specimen is not in the NHMUK type collection; Vane-Wright (1975) and later Pyrcz & Neild (1996) affirmed that this specimen is deposited at the NHMUK in the Rothschild collection. Nevertheless, the lectotype, illustrated by Pyrcz & Neild (1996) and Warren et al. (2016), compares perfectly with female specimens of Z. itys , as recognized by Dias et al. (2012) and here.

Distribution

It is widespread in the Amazon basin and the Guianas, usually in low to mid-altitudes, occurring from about sea level to 1500 m on the eastern slopes of the Andes, in Bolivia, Brazil (Acre, Amazonas, Rondônia, Roraima, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Pará ), Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela ( Fig. 19). It may occur in northwestern Argentina (i.e. Catamarca, Jujuy, Salta and Tucumán) and further south and east in Brazil (i.e. Goiás, Tocantins and Maranhão) .

Examined material

See Supporting Information, Appendix S1.