Pedaliodes rodriguezi Pyrcz & Andrade

Pyrcz, Tomasz W., Prieto, Carlos, Viloria, Angel L. & Andrade, Gonzalo, 2013, New species of high elevation cloud forest butterflies of the genus Pedaliodes Butler from the northern Colombian Andes (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Satyrinae), Zootaxa 3716 (4), pp. 528-538 : 531-532

Pedaliodes rodriguezi Pyrcz & Andrade , n. sp.

( Figs. 5, 6 , 12 , 15 )

Material examined. HOLOTYPE (male): Colombia, Departamento Antioquia, El Retiro, Reserva La Castellana, 6o06’30’’N, 75o32’57’’W, 2800–2850 m, 08.VIII.2007, T. Pyrcz leg., MZUJ, to be deposited in MHN-UN; PARATYPES (18 males and 1 female): 2 males: same data as the holotype, MZUJ; 2 males: El Retiro, Reserva La Castellana, 2700–2750 m, 12.IX.2003, T. Pyrcz leg., MZUJ; 1 male: Antioquia, Envigado, 2600 m, 09.XI.2002, G. Rodríguez leg., MZUJ; 3 males: same data but 2600–2800 m, 20.XII.2002 (prep. genit. 08/ 22.10.2010, A. Zubek), MZUJ; 1 male: same data but 2600 m, 09.XI.2002, MZUJ; 1 male: same data but 2600 m, 31.III.2002 (prep. genit.

09/ 09.11.2010), MZUJ; 1 male: same data but IV.2002, MZUJ; 1 male: Antioquia, San Felix, 6o20’20’’N, 75o38’27’’W, 3000 m, 13.IX.2003, T. Pyrcz leg., MZUJ; 1 male: same data but 2600–2650 m, 09.IV.2006, G. Rodriguez leg., MZUJ; 1 male: Antioquia, Carretera Santa Rosa – Yarumal, 6o41’28’’N, 75o28’02’’W, 2600–2900 m, 04.I.2003, G. Rodríguez leg., MZUJ; 1 male: Antioquia, Santa Rosa via Llanos de San Andrés, 2700–2750 m, 17.VIII.2007, T. Pyrcz leg., MZUJ; 2 males: Antioquia, Loma Escobero, via al Retiro, Envigado, Medellin, 2500– 2900 m, 04.VIII.2007, Pierre Boyer leg.; 1 male: Antioquia, Envigado, 2600 m, 31.III.2002, Gabriel Rodriguez leg., PBF; 1 female: Antioquia, La Estrella, El Romeral, 6o07’09’’N, 75o40’00’’W, 2872 m, jama, 28.02.2010, C. F. Alvarez leg., 256, BMC 20-1187, MUCM; 1 male: Caldas, Manizales, 5o01’N, 75o23’W, 2700 m, 28.09.2007, H. Warren-Gash leg., ICN-MHN-L 26865, MHN-UN.

Diagnosis. The only conspicuous HWV marking is a golden yellow mid-costal streak extending posteriorly to M1, which sets the species apart from all other sympatric congeners, in particular from the local population of P. porcia (Hewitson) , which appears to be the most closely related species. The Antioquian population of P. porcia ( Fig. 2 ), however, is characterized by a long costal streak extending into the median area of the wing. A somewhat similar HWV pattern is found in P. rudnyi Pyrcz in southern Colombia and a few other Peruvian species, such as P. aureola Pyrcz, P. auraria Thieme and P. boettgeri Pyrcz , all differing noticeably in male genitalia, which rules out their closer affinity.

Description. Male ( Fig. 5 , 15 ). Head: Antennae slender, reaching nearly half length of the costa, covered with sparse scales, dorsally brown, ventrally chestnut, with orange brown club formed gradually, slightly thicker than shaft, composed of 11 flagellomeres. Eyes blackish brown, lustrous, covered with sparse and short (compared to other species of Pedaliodes described here) hair. Labial palpi two times as long as the head, ventrally covered with long, black hairy scales, laterally and dorsally with short hair and greyish-brown scales. Frons with a tuft of rather short, black hair. Thorax: Dorsally black, patagium, tegulae and prothorax covered with long, brown and golden yellow hairy scales, otherwise mostly naked; ventrally black; legs brown, tibiae covered with chestnut hair, femora and tarsi with chestnut and sandy yellow scales, tarsi with numerous blackish, short spines. FW (length: 27.5 mm) with apex subacute, outer margin straight; fringes intermittently milky white and brown. FWD uniform blackish brown, lustrous; a rectangular scent patch in median area, roughly 3–4 mm wide, extending from subcosta to anal margin. HW rounded with a slightly undulating outer margin; fringes short, dark brown. HWD uniform blakish brown, lustrous, basal one-third hairy. FWV medium brown, a shade lighter in distal one-third; a faint postdiscal costal streak made up of milky white scales, gradually fading away before reaching vein M2; distal margin from apex to vein M2 auburn. HWV ground color medium brown, liberally covered with dark brown ripple-like pattern, more prominent towards costal margin, and along apex, with a short, golden yellow costal streak in median area; a single, minute, milky white submarginal dot in Cu1–Cu2. Abdomen: Black, dorsally and laterally naked covered with chestnut, ventrally with chestnut and sandy yellow scales. Male genitalia ( Fig. 12 ) with dorsum of tegumen flat, uncus slender, gently curving downwards, approximately same length of tegumen dorsum; subunci slender, approximately 2/3 the length of uncus; pedunculus small; valvae roughly the length of tegumen+uncus, ending with sharp, dorsal process aligned with the blunt distal extremity; saccus wide and rather shallow; aedeagus as long as saccus+valve, stout, contorted, slightly flattened dorsoventrally, proximal opening 2/5 the length of the entire aedeagus, approximately the same width as the remaining part of it, without any lateral cogs, and a subacute extremity.

Female ( Fig. 6 ). Head and Thorax: Sexual dimorphism slight, expressed mostly in paler color of female on both dorsal and ventral wing surface. Abdomen: Female genitalia not examined.

Etymology. The specific epithet is a patronym for Gabriel Rodríguez, a Colombian geologist and lepidopterist from Medellín who has contributed significantly over the years to the knowledge of Colombian butterflies, and was the first collector of this species.

Comments. This species could have been mistaken in the past with the widespread and polytypic Pedaliodes porcia . Nevertheless, the two occur sympatrically in Antioquia which immediately rules out their conspecifity. P. rodriguezi is found in a number of localities in central Antioquia and is not uncommon at 2600–2900 m. It has not been reported so far from the areas of Central Cordillera situated farther south, for the example in the Nevado del Ruíz area, despite rather long-term and thorough sampling. This suggests that it may be the only endemic species of Pedaliodes in the Central Cordillera in Antioquia. One specimen from the collection of H. Warren-Gash is labeled as from Manizales, Caldas, but this record needs confirmation since no other individuals of P. rodriguezi from Caldas have been located, even in the Universidad de Caldas collection or during a long-term sampling project in the area of Manizales (C. Ríos Malaver, pers. comm.).

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 8. Pedaliodes adults. 1, P. haydoni male (holotype); 2, P. porcia male; 3, P. adrianae male (holotype); 4, P. adrianae female (paratype); 5, P. rodriguezi male (holotype); 6, P. ro dr i gu e z i female (paratype); 7, P. philinae male (holotype); 8, P. philinae female (paratype).

FIGURES 9 – 12. Male genitalia. Pedaliodes haydoni (paratype): 9 A, genitalia in lateral view; 9 B, aedeagus in lateral view; 9 C, aedeagus in dorsal view; Pedaliodes adrianae (paratype): 10 A, genitalia in lateral view; 10 B, aedeagus in lateral view; 10 C, aedeagus in dorsal view; Pedaliodes philinae (paratype): 11 A, genitalia in lateral view; 11 B, aedeagus in lateral view; 11 C, aedeagus in dorsal view; Pedaliodes rodriguezi (paratype): 12 A, genitalia in lateral view; 12 B, aedeagus in lateral view; 12 C, aedeagus in dorsal view.

FIGURES 13 – 15. 13, Pedaliodes adrianae (paratype) female genitalia; 14, Pedaliodes philinae (paratype) female genitalia; 15, Pedaliodes rodriguezi male (Cerro San Felix, Antioquia, Colombia, 2900 m)