Melitaea phoebe subsp. sibina, Alpheraky, 1881

Russell, Peter J. C., Lukhtanov, Vladimir A. & Tennent, W. John, 2022, Reassessment of the status of some European and Asian Melitaea taxa described as subspecies of Melitaea phoebe ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775), with designations of lectotypes where appropriate (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), Zootaxa 5141 (1), pp. 25-38 : 26-28

M. phoebe sibina Alphéraky, 1881

[TL: Peoples Republic of China, NW Xinjiang, Yining, Sibo, Ili Valley]. The locality data label (see Fig. 7C ) has the location in Russian ‘Kuldscha, Kainak’, since this was Russian territory in 1879)]; for some considerable time this taxon has been given specific status, as Melitaea sibina , for example: Grum- Grshimailo, 1895: 291, Schultz 1908: 91 and Higgins, 1941: 347. However, Tóth & Varga (2011) were unable to separate M. sibina from M. phoebe using morphometric measurements of male and female genitalia and Lukhtanov et al. (2009), Leneveu et al. (2009) and Tóth et al. (2014) were also unable to separate these species using molecular data. The present authors consider that Melitaea sibina ( Figs 7A, B, C ) should be considered as a closely related species separate from M. phoebe due to its significantly different wing pattern, in agreement with van Oorschot & Coutsis (2014: 65) and Korb (2018: 58). As a point of interest the label in Russian ( Fig. 7C ): ‘Кол.[лекциЯ] Вел.[икого] Кн.[ЯЗЯ]/ НиколаЯ/ Михайловича’ translates to ‘Collection of Grand Duke Nikolai Mikhailovich’.

It is noted that Korb (1998: 62) synonymised M. scotosia weiwueria Huang & Murayama, 1992 [TL: China, Xinjiang, Altai, Jiadengu], with nominate M. scotosia Butler, 1878 and Lang (2012: 160) synonymised it with M. scotosia butleri Higgins (1940: 53) . From Huang & Murayama’s monochrome figure of a worn specimen (1992: 8, fig. 17 no. 19), it is almost impossible to provide specific identification. However, Korb & Bolshakov (2011: 42) and van Oorschot & Coutsis (2014: 65) placed this taxon in synonymy with M. sibina , which seems to be a more plausible interpretation (although not indisputable, possibly requiring further investigation), since the distance to Altai in Xinjiang province is more than 1000 km. northwest of the widely recognized distribution of M. scotosia in northeast China, Korea, and Japan.

Figures

FIGURES 7–11. 7, Lectotype of Melitaea phoebe sibina Alphéraky, 1881. 8, Melitaea phoebe ab. tatara Krulikovsky, 1891. 9, Lectotype of Melitaea phoebe ornata Christoph, 1893. 10, Lectotype of Melitaea phoebe uralensis Krulikovsky, 1897 (= ufensis Krulikovsky 1902). 11, Lectotype of Melitaea phoebe var. tungusa Herz, 1899. Figs 7, 9, 11 © V.A. Lukhtanov. Figs 8, 10 © expired. A = upperside, B = underside, C = labels on specimen pin.