Argynnis pallescens Butler, 1873

Spitsyna, Elizaveta A., Kondakov, Alexander V., Bovykina, Galina V., Potapov, Grigory S., Zheludkova, Alisa A. & Spitsyn, Vitaly M., 2024, The taxonomic status of Argynnis pallescens Butler, 1873 stat. rev. from Japan and the Kuril Islands (Russia) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), Ecologica Montenegrina 75, pp. 185-189 : 186-189

Argynnis pallescens Butler, 1873 stat. rev.

Type locality: “ Hakodadi ” [ Japan, Hokkaido]

Material examined. RUSSIA, Kunashir Island : Tretyakovo village, cottages on the edge of coniferous and broad-leaved forest and seaside meadows, 43°59'13"N, 145°39'12"E, 12.07.2021, 1♂, E. Spitsyna & V. Spitsyn leg. ; the same locality and collectors, 20- 25.07.2021, 4♂; the same locality and collectors, 26- 30.07.2021, 6♂; the same locality and collectors, 04.08.2021, 3♀; the same locality and collectors, 09.08.2023, 1♂; Tretyakovo village , coniferous and broad-leaved forest, 43°58'52"N, 145°39'12"E, 12- 13.08.2023, 3♂, E. Spitsyna & V. Spitsyn leg. ; Kal'dernyy cordon, Kurile bamboo ( Sasa kurilensis ) with sparse broad-leaved forest, 43°51'30"N, 145°30'48"E, 17– 18.08.2023, 1♀, E. Spitsyna & V. Spitsyn leg.

Reference COI barcode sequence. GenBank acc. no. PP969759-PP969762 [Kunashir].

Remarks. (1) Argynnis pallescens Butler, 1873 stat. rev. reliably inhabits Hokkaido, Honshu, and the Kuril Islands. The COI sequence of the specimen from Honshu, which was obtained via databases (BOLD acc. no. GBGL21946-19, GenBank acc. no. LC093260), belongs to A. pallescens Butler, 1873 stat. rev., but it was not used in this study due to its short length. The COI sequences of the specimens from Honshu, which were also obtained via databases (BOLD acc. no. GBLN4367-14, GenBank acc. no. AB855832 | BOLD acc. no. GBGL21945-19, GenBank acc. no. LC093259), belong to another species and were not used due to their short length. Two sequences obtained in this study (GenBank acc. no. PP969759 and PP969760) were not included in the construction of phylogenetic tree because of insufficient lengths. Both sequences are identical to the haplotype of the specimen from Honshu (BOLD acc. no. GBGL21946-19, GenBank acc. no. LC093260). In addition, the comparison of these sequences with sequences presented in the phylogenetic tree reveals only one nucleotide difference.

(2) Besides the considerable genetic distance between A. pallescens stat. rev. and A. adippe , there are morphological differences in the male genitalia structure of these species, namely in the structure of the valva and the aedeagus (see Fig. 2 (this paper) and Fig. 5 ( Tuzov & Bozano (2017)). The male genitalia of A. pallescens stat. rev. are similar to those of A. vorax (see Fig. 2 (this paper) and the figure presented in Tuzov & Bozano (2017)).

(3) The distribution of A. pallescens stat. rev. on Sakhalin Island requires clarification using molecular methods.

(4) Argynnis niobe-xanthodippe-coredippe species group requires further revision using molecular approaches. The molecular data indicate that Argynnis niobe (Linnaeus, 1758) is distributed from Spain to Primorsky Krai and South Korea, thus the validity of both A. xanthodippe and A. coredippe is doubtful.

Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the Russian Ministry of Science and Higher Education (project No. FUUW-2023-0001). We are grateful to the staff of the Kurilsky Nature Reserve for their help during this study.

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Figures

Figure 2. Argynnis pallescens Butler, 1873 stat. rev. from Kunashir Island, Russia: A, C) Male; B, D) Female; E) Male genitalia; F) Habitat (meadow along birch forest with Kurile bamboo (Sasa kurilensis)).