Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Responsive image
Issue: Vol. 5659 No. 4: 7 Jul. 2025
Type: Article
Published: 2025-07-07
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5659.4.5
Page range: 547-564
Abstract views: 97
PDF downloaded: 5

Out of the blue: a new blue Lymanopoda butterfly from the páramo of northern Colombia raises questions about disjunct distributions (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae, Satyrinae)

Department of Evolution of Invertebrates; Institute of Zoology and Biomedical Research; Jagiellonian University; Gronostajowa 9; 30-387 Kraków; Poland
7 Lotissement l’Horizon; Le Puy Sainte Réparade; France
Nature Education Centre; Jagiellonian University; Gronostajowa 5; 30–387 Kraków; Poland
Biology Department; University of Lund; Lund; Sweden
Instituto de Ciencias Naturales ICN; Universidad Nacional de Colombia; Carrera 30; No. 45-03; Bogotá; Colombia
Hungarian National Museum Public Collections Centre; Budapest—Hungarian Natural History Museum; Department of Zoology; H-1088 Budapest; Baross utca 13; Hungary; HUN-REN; Centre for Energy Research Institute of Technical Physics and Materials Science; Nanostructures Department; 121 Budapest; Konkoly Thege Miklós út 29–33; Hungary
Programa de Biología; Facultad de Ciencias Matemáticas y Naturales; Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas; Carrera 4#26D-31; Bogotá; Colombia
Lepidoptera Andes COI barcoding Lymanopoda chysquyco sp. nov. Pronophilina phylogenetic relationships structural colours taxonomy

Abstract

A new, striking species of satyrine butterfly, Lymanopoda chysquyco sp. nov. (Nymphalidae, Satyrinae, Satyrini, Pronophilina) is described from the Páramo de Guerrero, the northern extremity of high-altitude grasslands in the Colombian Eastern Cordillera. Among approximately 70 known Lymanopoda species, only five exhibit blue colour on the upperside of their wings, with no evidence of close relationships among them. The new species superficially resembles L. samius Westwood which occurs parapatrically at slightly lower elevations and belongs to a distantly related lineage within the genus. Remarkably, external morphology and male genitalia suggest a strong similarity of the new species to L. hazelana found in southern Ecuador and northernmost Peru—over 1300 km away. Molecular analysis using COI barcoding confirms that L. hazelana and a few other closely related species also found in southern Ecuador are the closest known relatives of L. chysquyco sp. nov. This substantial geographic disjunction is unlikely to be a sampling artefact, as intermediate páramo regions of the Eastern and Central Colombian Cordillera and central Ecuador have been extensively surveyed. The origin of L. chysquyco sp. nov. in northern Colombia remains unclear, and two possible scenarios—long-distance dispersal or vicariance accompanied by large-scale extinction in intervening areas—are considered.

 

References

  1. Bálint, Z., Kertész, K., Piszter, G., Vértesy, Z. & Biró, L.P. (2012) The well-tuned blues: the role of structural colours as optical signals in the species recognition of a local butterfly fauna (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae: Polyommatinae). Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 9 (73), 1745–1756. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2011.0854
  2. Bode-Oke, A.T. & Dong, H. (2020) The reverse flight of a monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) is characterized by a weight-supporting upstroke and postural changes. Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 17, 20200268. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2020.0268
  3. Casner, K.L. & Pyrcz, T.W. (2010) Patterns and timing of diversification in a tropical montane butterfly genus, Lymanopoda (Nymphalidae, Satyrinae). Ecography, 33, 251–259. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0587.2010.06306.x
  4. Crisp, M.D. & Cook, L.G. (2007) A congruent molecular signature of vicariance across multiple plant lineages. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 43 (3), 1106–1117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2007.02.030
  5. Drummond, A.J., Ashton, B., Buxton, S., Cheung, M., Heled, J., Kearse, M., Moir, R., Stones-Havas, S., Thierer, T. & Wilson, A. (2009) Geneious. Version 4.8.5. Available from: https://www.geneious.com/ (accessed 17 June 2025)
  6. Gibo, D.L. & Pallett, M.J. (1979) Soaring flight of monarch butterflies, Drrnous ple.vippn.s (Lepidoptera: Danaidae). during the late summer migration in southern Ontario. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 57, 1393–1401.
  7. JNADS, J., Silveira, O.T., Carpenter, J.M. & Cunha, D.B. (2023) Divergence time analysis of the Neotropical wasp genus Protopolybia Ducke, 1905 (Vespidae, Polistinae, Epiponini) using a Multilocus Phylogenetic Approach. Zootaxa, 5330 (1), 106–116. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5330.1.5
  8. Katoh, K., Rozewicki, J. & Yamada, K.D. (2019) MAFFT online service: multiple sequence alignment, interactive sequence choice and visualization. Briefings in Bioinformatics, 20 (4), 1160–1166. https://doi.org/10.1093/bib/bbx108
  9. Kalyaanamoorthy, S., Minh, B.Q., Wong, T.K.F., von Haeseler, A. & Jermiin, L.S. (2017) Model Finder: Fast model selection for accurate phylogenetic estimates. Nature Methods, 14, 587–589. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.4285
  10. Kimura, M. (1980) A simple method for estimating evolutionary rates of base substitutions through comparative studies of nucleotide sequences. Journal of Molecular Evolution, 16, 111–120. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01731581
  11. Klots, A.B. (1956) Lepidoptera. In: Tuxen, S.L. (Ed.), Taxonomists’s Glossary of Genitalia in Insects. Munksgaard, Copenhagen, pp. 97–111.
  12. Kumar, S., Stecher, G., Suleski, M., Sanderford, M., Sharma, S. & Tamura, K. (2024) MEGA12: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis version 12 for adaptive and green computing. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 41 (12), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msae263
  13. Li, F., Xu, X., Zhang, Z., Liu, F., Yang, Z. & Li, D. (2022) Multilocus species delimitation and phylogeny of the genus Calommata (Araneae, Atypidae) in southern China. Zoologica Scripta, 51 (2), 199–216. https://doi.org/10.1111/zsc.12525
  14. Mallo, D. & Posada, D. (2016) Multilocus inference of species trees and DNA barcoding. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Science, 371, 20150335. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2015.0335
  15. Minh, B.Q., Nguyen, M.A.T. & von Haeseler, A. (2013) Ultrafast approximation for phylogenetic bootstrap. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 30 (5), 1188–1195. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/mst024
  16. Minh, B.Q., Schmidt, H.A., Chernomor, O., Schrempf, D., Woodhams, M.D., von Haeseler, A. & Lanfear, R. (2020) IQ-TREE 2: New models and efficient methods for phylogenetic inference in the genomic era. Molecular Biolology and Evolution, 37, 1530–1534. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msaa015
  17. Ota, R., Waddell, P.J., Hasegawa, M., Shimodaira, H. & Kishino, H. (2000) Appropriate likelihood ratio tests and marginal distributions for evolutionary tree models with constraints on parameters. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 17 (5), 798–803. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.molbev.a026358
  18. Pyrcz, T.W. (2005) A new species of Lymanopoda at the southern generic distribution limit on the Pacific slopes of the Andes. Lambillionea, 105 (2), 251–256.
  19. Pyrcz, T.W. (2010) Evolution of butterflies of the genus Redonda (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Satyrinae), and their adaptation to the high Andean environment. In: Mirek, Z., Flakus, A., Krzanowska, A., Paulo, A. & Wojtusiak, J. (Eds.), The Nature and Culture of Latin America. Review of Polish Studies. Szafer Institute of Botany, Kraków, pp. 265–273.
  20. Pyrcz, T.W., Boyer, P., Petit, J-C., Garlacz, R., Zając-Garlacz, K., Espeland, M. & Willmott, K.R. (2024a) Bedazzled: a new, striking species of Corades from the outskirts of Quito questions our knowledge of Andean cloud forest butterflies (Lepidoptera, Nymphalidae, Satyrinae). Zootaxa, 5453 (2), 255–262. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5453.2.6
  21. Pyrcz, T.W., Boyer, P., Mahecha-J, O., Farfan, J., Zając-Garlacz, K., Bálint, Z. & Cerdeña-G, J. (2024b) The golden butterfly: a new species of Pampasatyrus Hayward, extending northwards the range of the genus in the Andes (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae, Satyrinae). Insect Systematics & Evolution, 56 (1), 32–46. https://doi.org/10.1163/1876312X-bja10064
  22. Pyrcz, T.W., Lorenc-Brudecka, J., Zubek, A., Prieto, C., Boyer, P., Florczyk, K. & Wacławick, B. & Lachowska-Cierlik, D. (2018) Considerations on the taxonomy of the genus Arhuaco Adams and Bernard 1977, and its relationships with the genus Pronophila Doubleday [1849] (Nymphalidae, Satyrinae). Neotropical Entomology, 48, 302–313. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-018-0641-4
  23. Pyrcz, T.W., Prieto, C., Boyer, P. & Lorenc-Brudecka, J. (2018) Discovery of a remarkable new species of Lymanopoda (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae) and considerations on its phylogenetic position: An integrative taxonomic approach. European Journal of Entomology, 115, 387–399. https://doi.org/10.14411/eje.2018.039
  24. Pyrcz, T.W., Mahecha-J, O., Boyer, P., Lachowska-Cierlik, D., Cerdeña, J., Farfan, J., Garlacz, R., Lorenc-Brudecka, J., Bálint, Z., Fåhraeus, C., Zając-Garlacz, K. & Espeland, M. (2024c) A snow-dwelling tropical butterfly? An unprecedented discovery of a new genus of the Pedaliodes clade in an extreme, high-altitude Andean environment (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 202 (2), zlae112. https://doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlae112
  25. Pyrcz, T.W. & Fratello, S. (2005) Cloud Forest butterfly fauna of the Pantepui-poor or poorly known? Description of new species and records of new genera of Pronophilina: Eretris agata and Oxeoschistus romeo (Nymphalidae: Satyrinae). Journal of the Lepidopterists’ Society, 59, 200–211.
  26. Pyrcz, T.W. & Garlacz, R. (2012) The Presence–Absence Situation and Its Impact on the Assemblage Structure and Interspecific Relations of Pronophilina Butterflies in the Venezuelan Andes (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Neotropical Entomology, 41 (1), 186–195. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-012-0031-2
  27. Pyrcz, T.W., Lorenc-Brudecka, J., Zubek, A., Prieto, C., Boyer, P., Florczyk, K., Wacławik, B. & Lachowska-Cierlik, D. (2019) Considerations on the Taxonomy of the Genus Arhuaco Adams and Bernard 1977, and its Relationships with the Genus Pronophila Doubleday [1849] (Nymphalidae, Satyrinae). Neotropical Entomology, 48 (2), 302–313. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-018-0641-4
  28. Pyrcz, T.W., Stachowicz, I. & Garlacz, R. (2013) A new Andean element in the lepidopterous fauna of the Guiana Shield: the day-flying genus Erateina Doubleday, with the description of two new species from Roraima, Tramen and Auyán Tepui (Geometridae: Larentiinae). Genus, 24 (3–4), 291–301.
  29. Pyrcz, T.W., Viloria, A.L., Boyer, P. & Lamas, G. (2008) Systematics, bionomics and zoogeography of high Andean pedaliodines, Part. 6: Pedaliodes demathani Pyrcz – a widely polytypic species from Peru and Bolivia. Genus, 19 (1), 389–407.
  30. Pyrcz, T.W., Willmott, K.R. & Hall, J. (1999) Contributions to the knowledge of Ecuadorian Pronophilini, Part 3, three new species and five new subspecies of Lymanopoda. Genus, 10 (3), 497–522.
  31. Pyrcz, T.W., Willmott, K.R., Garlacz, R., Boyer, P. & Gareca, Y. (2013) The latitudinal gradient in species diversity of a tropical montane fauna: spatial covariance among Lepidoptera along eastern slopes of the Andes. Insect conservation and diversity. [published online]
  32. Pyrcz, T.W., Zubek, A., Boyer, P., Nakamura, I., Wacławik, B. & Florczyk, K. (2020) Revisional notes on the cloud forest butterfly genus Oxeoschistus Butler in Central America (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae). Neotropical Entomology, 49 (3), 392–411. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-019-00757-7
  33. Rambaut, A. (2018) FigTree v. 1.4.4: Tree Figure Drawing Tool. Available from: https://github.com/rambaut/figtree/releases (accessed 1 December 2021)
  34. Rambaut, A., Suchard, M., Xie, D. & Drummond, A.J. (2014) MCMC Trace Analysis Package. Version 1.6. Available from: http://tree.bio.ed.ac.uk/software/tracer/ (accessed 30 November 2024)
  35. Savage, J.M. (1982) The enigma of the Central American herpetofauna: dispersals or vicariance? Annals Of the Missouri Botanical Garden, 69, 464–547. https://doi.org/10.2307/2399082
  36. Sosa Espinosa, J., Stavenga, G.D., van der Kooi, J.C. & Giraldo, A.M. (2024) Morpho butterfly flashiness crucially depends on wing scale curvature. Biology Letters, 20 (20240358), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2024.0358
  37. Schwartz, J.H. (2021) Evolution, systematics, and the unnatural history of mitochondrial DNA. Mitochondrial DNA, Part A, 32 (4), 126–151. https://doi.org/10.1080/24701394.2021.1899165
  38. Thayer, C.R. & Patel, H.N. (2023) A meta-analysis of butterfly structural colors: their color range distribution and biological production. Journal of Experimental Biology, 226 (21), jeb245940. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.245940
  39. Talavera, G., Lukhtanov, V., Pierce, N.E. & Vila, R. (2022) DNA barcodes combined with multilocus data of representative taxa can generate reliable higher-level phylogenies. Systematic Biology, 71 (2), 382–395. https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/syab038
  40. Yoder, A.D. & Nowak, M.D. (2006) Has vicariance or dispersal been the predominant biogeographic force in Madagascar? Only time will tell. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics, 37, 405–431. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.37.091305.110239
  41. Viloria, A.L., Pyrcz, Y.W., Ferrer-Paris, J.R., Beccaloni, G.W., Sattler, K. & Lees, D.C. (2003) A brachypterous butterfly? Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 270 (S1), 21–24. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2003.0015
  42. Zink, R.M., Blackwell-Rago, R.C. & Ronquist, F. (2000) The Shifting Roles of Dispersal and Vicariance in Biogeography. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B, 267 (1442), 497–503. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2000.1028

How to Cite

Pyrcz, T.W., Boyer, P., Garlacz, R., Fåhraeus, C., Andrade-C., M.G., Bálint, Z. & Mahecha-J., O. (2025) Out of the blue: a new blue Lymanopoda butterfly from the páramo of northern Colombia raises questions about disjunct distributions (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae, Satyrinae). Zootaxa, 5659 (4), 547–564. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5659.4.5