A distinct species, Dodona formosana, detected in the dodona eugenes species complex: Clarification of the taxonomic status of the Punch butterfly in Taiwan

Li Wei Wu, Wen Jie Lin, Yu Feng Hsu*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The Tailed Punch, Dodona eugenes, is widely distributed in East Asia with seven subspecies currently recognized. However, two of them, namely ssp. formosana and ssp. esakii found in Taiwan, are hard to distinguish from each other due to ambiguous diagnostic characters. In this study, their taxonomic status is clarified by comparing genitalia characters and phylogenetic relationships based on mitochondrial sequences, COI and COII (total 2211 bps). Our results show that there is no reliable feature to separate these two subspecies. Surprisingly we found that Dodona in Taiwan is more closely related to the Orange Punch, D. egeon, than to other subspecies of D. eugenes. Therefore, the following nomenclatural changes are proposed: Dodona eugenes formosana is revised to specific status as Dodona formosana Matsumura, 1919, stat. rev, and ssp. esakii is sunk to a junior synonym of Dodona formosana syn. n.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)59-77
Number of pages19
JournalZooKeys
Volume2018
Issue number736
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018

Keywords

  • Endemism
  • Male genitalia
  • Myrsinaceae
  • Wing pattern

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Animal Science and Zoology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A distinct species, Dodona formosana, detected in the dodona eugenes species complex: Clarification of the taxonomic status of the Punch butterfly in Taiwan'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this