Taxonomy of Mechanitis (F.) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) from the West Colombian Andes: an Integrative Approach

Abstract

Species identification in the butterfly genus Mechanitis (F.) (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) becomes difficult when it is based only on wing color patterns, a common practice in butterfly taxonomy. Difficulties in Mechanitis taxonomy are related to the widespread mimicry and polymorphism among species belonging to this genus. Species recognition and inventories of Mechanitis genus in geographic areas as the Andean region of Colombia are of particular interest and the use of more than one character for taxonomic identification is desirable. In this study, we included morphological, ecological, and mitochondrial DNA data to identify the occurring species in this region. Species of Mechanitis were studied from ecological, morphological, and molecular perspectives considering host plant identification, oviposition behavior, and life cycles under laboratory conditions. Immature morphology, patterns of wing color, and genital structures of adults were also studied. The genetic barcoding region of the cytochrome oxidase I mitochondrial gene was sequenced and used to verify the limits between species previously defined by the other characters and to validate its usefulness for species delimitation in this particular genus. The integrative approach combining independent datasets successfully allowed species identification as compared to the approach based on a single dataset. Three well-differentiated species were found in the studied region, Mechanitis menapis (Hewitson), Mechanitis polymnia (Linnaeus), and Mechanitis lysimnia (Fabricius). New valuable characters that could improve taxonomic identification in this genus are considered.

Life Cycle and Host Plants ofMechanitis menapis doryssus1(Danainae: Ithomiini) in Mexico

“…To date, however, it has not been reported as a host plant for any subspecies of Mechanitis menapis Hewitson [1856]. M. menapis seems to prefer as host plants the two sister sections, Acanthophora and Lasiocarpa (Giraldo and Uribe 2012). No species of the section Lasiocarpa were found in the study area.…”

“…This oviposition behavior differentiates M. menapis from its sympatric species M. polymnia, which usually lays as many as 30 eggs (Young andMoffett 1979, Giraldo andUribe 2012), and from M. lysimnia that lays as many as 25 eggs (Giraldo unpublished data). This behavior and the host plant preference could also be useful in the study of phylogenetic relationships in Mechanitis.…”

“…To date, the genus Mechanitis, which belongs to the Ithomiini tribe, has more than 50 described taxa in five recognized species; however, molecular (Giraldo and Uribe 2012) and geographical analyses of distribution of the species (Giraldo et al unpublished data) suggest many subspecies have been described based on subjective concepts and do not have biological significance. More ecological and morphological data are needed to resolve the taxonomic status of the members of the genus.…”

“…More ecological and morphological data are needed to resolve the taxonomic status of the members of the genus. For butterflies in general and for Ithomiini in particular, information about the immature stages has been successfully used in taxonomic and phylogenetic studies to help resolve systematic questions (Brown and Freitas 1994;Motta 2003;Willmott and Freitas 2006;Lamas 2006, 2008;Freitas and Brown 2008;Bolaños et al 2011;Giraldo and Uribe 2012;Hill et al 2012).…”

Immature stages ofPagyris cymothoe cymothoe(Hewitson, 1855) (Lepidoptera, Danainae, Ithomiini)

“…For butterflies in general, and for the Ithomiini in particular, information from the immature stages has been used in several taxonomic and phylogenetic studies (Brown and Freitas 1994;Motta 2003;Willmott and Freitas 2006;Lamas 2006, 2008;Freitas and Brown 2008;Bolaños Martinez et al 2011;Willmott et al 2011;Giraldo and Uribe 2012;Hill et al 2012). Although characters of the early stages are often incongruent with those from adults when it comes to phylogenetic reconstructions, they are much more informative at subtribal level, and also particularly important in supporting the deep nodes in consensus trees (Willmott and Freitas 2006).…”