Thereus eryssus

Faynel, Christophe & Fåhraeus, Christer, 2023, Two new Thereus species from Peru, with notes on ecological niche partitioning (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae: Theclinae), Zootaxa 5315 (4), pp. 301-314 : 310-311

Thereus eryssus

( Figures 7, 8 , 13 , 18 , 21 )

Material examined. French Guiana. 4♁: Ex Oberthür Coll. Brit. Mus. 1927-3 (NHMUK 15201081, NHMUK 15201077, NHMUK 15201068, NHMUK 15201072). 2♁: Cayenne, Ex Oberthür Coll. Brit. Mus. 1927-3, exmusaeo Dris. Boisduval (NHMUK 15201070, NHMUK 15201094). 1♀: Maroni, J. J. Joicey Coll. B.M. 1929 -435 (NHMUK 15201100). 2♀: Ex Oberthür Coll. Brit. Mus. 1927-3 (NHMUK 15201069, NHMUK 15201103) . Brazil. 1♁: Amazonas, Maués , X-XI. 2008, C. Mielke leg., Coll. C.F. n°10619 ( CF) . 1♁: Idem , Coll. C.F. n°10620, DNA sample CF-LYC-465, gen. prep. CF n°657 ( CF) . 1♁: Pará, Reserva “Sonho Azul”, PA 140, km15, 68786 Santo Antônio do Tauá , 4. XII. 2002, P. Jauffret leg., Coll. C.F. n°10053, DNA sample ID RCCFXPL1G01 ( CF) . 1♁: Idem , 12. VI. 2003, Coll. C.F. n°10679 ( CF) . 1♁: Pará, Vigia, Campina , 22. VII. 2007, J. Jauffret leg., Coll. C.F. n°10186 ( CF) . 1♁: Pará, Bom Jesus do Tocantins, Rio Jacundá , 11. VI. 2004, P. Jauffret leg., Coll. C.F. n°10116 ( CF) . 1♁: Paraná, Ponta Grossa, Vila Velha , 900 m, I. 2009, C. Mielke leg., Coll. C.F. n°10634, DNA sample ID RCCFXPL1G02 ( CF) . 1♁: Pará, Santarém ( MfN) . 2♁: Pará , Itaituba, Tapajós, 1890 ( MfN) . 3♀: Pará, Reserva “Sonho Azul”, PA 140, km15, 68786 Santo Antônio do Tauá , 28. VI. 2003, 5. XI. 2003, VI. 2005, P. Jauffret leg., Coll. C.F. n°10097, n°10063, n°10486 ( CF) . 1♀: same locality, VI. 2005, Coll. C.F. n°10561, DNA sample ID RCCFXPL1G04 ( CF) . 2♀: Pará , Alça Viária, PK 26, P. Jauffret leg., VIII. 2008, Coll. C.F. n°10227 & 10229, DNA sample ID RCCFXPL1G03 ( CF) .

Remarks. French Guiana is a new country record for Thereus eryssus based on old material (6♁, 3♀) stored in NHMUK. As far as we know, no recent material has been collected for 40 years, despite intense sampling in the area. Papilio eryssus Herbst is a replacement name for Papilio erix Cramer. The original description of P. erix does not give enough details to identify it correctly or to differentiate it from T. columbicola since the text is too vague and only the ventral face is depicted. The type of P. erix has not been located in Naturalis, Leiden (Rob de Vos, pers. comm.) and it is considered to be lost (Gerardo Lamas, pers. comm.). Our identification is based on Hewitson (1867, pl. 46, figs 203-204) in coherence with the type locality of P. erix ( Suriname) . This taxon and the next represent parapatric species with clear and consistent differences in androconia and the extent of blue on dorsal wing pattern. However, they have similar COI sequences with approximately 1% divergence (Table 3, n = 11) and they share the same BIN (ACK2912). It is therefore possible that they represent the same species with geographical variations, but we do not have convincing evidence to synonymize them in this work.

Identification Key for males of the Thereus eryssus species group

1. DFW with scent patch and pad........................................................................... 2

– DFW with only scent pad.................................................................. T. vicens sp. nov.

2. DFW blue scales largely surrounding androconia, with scent patch more than double size of scent pad.................. 3

– DFW blue restricted to basal part or surrounding androconia with very few blue scales in R 2 –R 3 and R 3 –M 1, scent patch equal size or slightly larger than scent pad...................................................................... 4

3. DFW black scent patch occupying quite all the discoidal cell, adjacent to a round grey scent patch, DFW large black apex........................................................................................... T. columbicola

– DFW black scent patch occupying only the distal half part of the discoidal cell, adjacent to a small grey crescent shape scent patch, DFW thin black margins on apex............................................................ T. eryssus

4. DFW black scent patch occupying only the distal half part of the discoidal cell, adjacent to an oval grey scent patch, dark ventral pattern with thin brown and white postmedian line....................................................... T. illex

– DFW black scent patch occupying quite all the discoidal cell, adjacent oval grey scent patch of same size, dark ventral pattern with large brown postmedian band enhanced with only a few white scales....................... T. tierralinda sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURES 1–8. Adults of Thereus, dorsal view at left. 1.♁ T. tierralinda sp. nov. (HT, Peru, MUSM). 2. ♁ T. illex (Colombia, MNHN). 3. ♁ T. vicens sp. nov. (HT, Peru, MUSM). 4. ♀ T. vicens sp. nov. (Peru, FILS). 5. ♁ T. columbicola (Peru, CF). 6. ♀ T. columbicola (Peru, CF). 7. ♁ T. eryssus (Brazil, CF). 8. ♀ T. eryssus (Brazil, CF).

FIGURES 10–14. Male DFW androconia. 10. Thereus tierralinda sp. nov. 11. T. illex. 12. T. columbicola. 13. T. eryssus. 14. T. vicens sp. nov.

FIGURES 15–19. Male genitalia, ventral view (on right), left lateral view (at left). 15. Thereus tierralinda sp. nov. (HT, Peru, MUSM). 16. T. illex (Colombia, MNHN). 17. T. columbicola (Peru, CF). 18. T. eryssus (Brazil, CF). 19. T. vicens sp. nov. (HT, Peru, MUSM).

FIGURES 20–22. Female genitalia. Ventral view (at left), lateral view (middle), papilla analis in lateral view (at right). 20. Thereus columbicola (Peru, CF). 21. T. eryssus (Brazil, CF). 22. T. vicens sp. nov. (HT, Peru, MUSM).