Cecropterus (Thorybes) viridissimus Zhang & Cong & Grishin 2023, new species
Creators: name: Zhang, Jing
name: Cong, Qian
name: Grishin, Nick V.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Lepidoptera
Hesperiidae
Cecropterus
Cecropterus viridissimus

description: Cecropterus (Thorybes) viridissimus Grishin, new species   
https://zoobank.org/ 855F436E-D634-4129-AB6F-FCFB51E374E0  
(Fig. 1 part, 15–16, 227–228)  
 Definition and diagnosis. This new species is very similar to Cecropterus virescens (Mabille, 1877) (type locality in French Guiana) phenotypically and keys to it (C.13.27) in Evans (1952). However, in both Z chromosome and mitochondrial genome trees, it is sister to the clade that consists of both C. virescens and Cecropterus egregius (A. Butler, 1870) (type locality unknown), which are rather different-looking species. COI barcode differs from C. virescens syntype by 2.7% (18 bp). Phenotypically, it differs from most C. virescens specimens by the white border on the hindwing underside, which harbors brown overscaling and is reduced in width from vein M 2 to the apex (Fig. 16), strongly humped in the middle dorsoposterior margin on the harpe, and wider separated uncus arms (Fig. 228). Due to the cryptic nature of this species, most reliable identification is achieved by DNA and a combination of the following base pairs is diagnostic in the nuclear genome: aly 2668.2.9:C109T, aly 2668.2.9:C123T, aly 1370.7.4:A221G, aly347.8.1:A265C, aly923.7.1:A781C, aly1313.24.3:A72A (not G), aly138.12.1:A515A (not G), aly208.4.3:T84T (not C), aly5623.1.3:C1206C (not T), aly173.13.2:G59G (not A), and COI barcode: T263C, A319G, T400T, T529C, T553C.   
 Barcode sequence of the holotype. Sample NVG-14108H10, GenBank OR837627, 658 base pairs: AACTTTATATTTTATTTTTGGAATTTGAGCAGGATTAATTGGAACTTCATTAAGTTTACTTATTCGAACTGAATTAGGAACTCCAGGATCTTTAATT GGAGATGATCAAATTTATAATACTATTGTAACAGCTCATGCTTTTATTATAATTTTTTTTATAGTTATACCTATTATAATTGGAGGATTTGGAAATT GATTAGTTCCTCTTATATTAGGAGCCCCTGATATAGCTTTTCCTCGTATAAATAATATAAGATTTTGACTATTACCCCCTTCATTAACTCTTTTAAT TTCAAGAAGTATTGTTGAAAATGGAGCGGGTACTGGATGAACTGTTTATCCTCCTTTATCTTCTAATATTGCCCATCAAGGAGCATCAGTAGATTTA GCAATTTTTTCTTTACATCTTGCAGGAATTTCATCTATTCTTGGAGCTATTAATTTTATTACAACTATTATTAATATACGAATTAATAATTTATCAT TTGATCAAATACCATTATTTATTTGAGCTGTAGGAATTACAGCCTTATTATTATTACTTTCATTACCCGTTTTAGCTGGAGCCATTACTATATTATT AACTGATCGAAATTTAAATACTTCATTTTTTGATCCTGCAGGTGGAGGAGATCCTATTTTATATCAACATTTATTT   
 Type material. Holotype: ♂ deposited in the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA (USNM), illustrated in Fig. 15–16, bears the following three rectangular labels, two white: [ECUADOR: Zamora | 56 km Loja-Zamora | 4° 2.7′S 78° 59.2′W | 4 October 1993 | S. S. Nicolay, leg.], [DNA sample ID: | NVG-14108H10 | c/o Nick V. Grishin], and one red [HOLOTYPE ♂ | Cecropterus | viridissimus Grishin].   
 Type locality. Ecuador: Zamora-Chinchipe Province, km 56 of Loja-Zamora road, elevation 976 m, GPS −4.0450, −78.9867.   
 Etymology. In Latin, viridissimus means very green or bright green. The name is given for the extensive green coloring of this species and is a masculine adjective.   
 Distribution. Only known from the holotype collected in Ecuador.   
 Comment. Curiously, in the tree constructed from autosome genes, the new species is sister to C. virescens in accord with phenotypic similarities, suggesting introgression and other irregularities in the evolution of its mitochondrial genome and Z chromosome.
description: Published as part of Zhang, Jing, Cong, Qian & Grishin, Nick V., 2023, Supplementary Materials and Appendix, pp. 1-115 in Insecta Mundi 2023 (26) on page 10, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10396362