Zaretis pythagoras, WILLMOTT & HALL, 2004

ZARETIS PYTHAGORAS WILLMOTT & HALL, 2004

( FIGS 10A–D, 15G, 16K,L, 19; SUPPORTING INFORMATION, APPENDIX S6)

Type material

The holotype of Zaretis pythagoras Willmott & Hall, 2004 has the following label data: Ecuador, Pichincha, Santo Domingo, Rio Taguaza (misspelled ‘Tatuaza’ in the original description), 23.VIII.1973 ( Willmott & Hall, 2004) (NHMUK).

Diagnosis

Zaretis pythagoras , unlike most species of the genus, is not very variable and is relatively distinctive. This species was recently described and diagnosed by Willmott & Hall (2004), but females were not known at the time of the description. Zaretis pythagoras is likely to be sympatric with Z. ellops , Z. delassisei , Z. crawfordhilli sp. nov., Z. elianahenrichae sp. nov. and Z. mirandahenrichae sp. nov. in Trans-Andean South America. Males ( Fig. 10A, B) can be distinguished from the above species by the shape of the FW apex, which is more falcate; by the outer margin always being crenulated; by the colour of the basal, post-median and submarginal areas along the outer margin being reddish brown; by the wide dark brown marginal area along the outer margin; and by the presence of a purplish sheen on the upperside of the wings when viewed obliquely. It can be distinguished further from Z. delassisei by the presence of reddish brown post-median area anterior to CuA 1 and the developed HW projection of the tornus at 2A; and from Z. crawfordhilli sp. nov. by the developed emargination of the inner margin of the FW at the tornus. Females ( Fig. 10C, D) can be distinguished from all sympatric species by the shape of the FW apex, which is more falcate; by the outer margin, which is always crenulated; by the colour of the FW basal area, which is dark orange, with post-median and submarginal areas along the outer margin dark orange with a yellowish orange suffusion; by the colour of the HW areas, which are mostly dark orange, with a yellowish orange suffusion near the inner margin in the basal and median areas; and by the wing undersides being mostly homogeneously dark brown, yellowish in the basal and post-median areas of the FW and in the median area of the HW; females of Z. delassisei are unknown.

Discussion

Zaretis pythagoras was recently described and discussed by Willmott & Hall (2004) and Dias et al. (2012). This species was referred as ‘ Z. violacea ’ nom. nud. by Salazar & Constantino (2001) and listed as ‘ Zaretis View in CoL sp. nov. ’ by Lamas (2004) before its description. Zaretis pythagoras was described based on eight male specimens from western Ecuador and Colombia. Male specimens were further illustrated by Constantino & Salazar (2007: figs 23, 24) and Checa (2008: 38, fig. 3). The female was described and incorrectly indicated as ‘female allotype’ by Choimet (2009) from a single specimen collected in western Ecuador at 1000 m. As can be deduced from the limited number of known specimens, there is little intraspecific variation in this species. Willmott & Hall (2004) indicated that specimens of Z. pythagoras were usually collected towards the end of the wet season in Ecuador, along forested rivers, where males were locally common in traps baited with rotting fish.

Distribution

Restricted to Trans-Andean South America wet rainforest habitats, from 300 to 1000 m, in western Colombia and northwestern Ecuador ( Fig. 19).

Examined material

See Supporting Information, Appendix S1.