Catasticta gelba Brown & Gabriel, 1939

Bollino, Maurizio & Costa, Mauro, 2007, An illustrated annotated check-list of the species of Catasticta (s. l.) Butler (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) of Venezuela, Zootaxa 1469, pp. 1-42 : 9-10

9 Catasticta gelba Brown & Gabriel, 1939 stat. rev. (TL.: Venezuela, Mérida)

(fig. 7: e-h; fig. 20)

Catasticta gelba Brown & Gabriel, 1939 has been treated as a subspecies of troezene ( Eitschberger & Racheli 1998, Lamas 2004). As previously mentioned, we found it sympatric and synchronic with Catasticta troezene miza in Táchira, for which reason we recognize Catasticta gelba Brown & Gabriel, 1939 as a distinct species, stat. rev. The best characters differentiating the two species are on VHW, with the dark discal band of gelba being significantly wider, “entering” the outer portion of the cell, while in troezene it is thin, never “entering” the cell (fig.2).

In females, the DHW marginal black band of gelba is large and touching the cell, with arrow-shaped white marks, while in troezene miza the band is thinner, not touching the cell, and with chevron-shaped marks suffused with black scales.

Females of both species are dimorphic: all examined gelba females are white, except one which is yellow, while of two known troezene miza females, one is yellow and the other yellowish-white.

Catasticta gelba is generally common in Mérida and the eastern side of El Tamá. No specimens are yet known from nearby Colombia. Populations on opposite sides of the Táchira depression show minor variation.