Stamnodes agapetica (Dyar, 1916)

Figs 39, 60, 94–95

Coenocalpe agapetica Dyar, 1916: 32. Type locality: Zacualpan [State of Mexico], Mexico. [USNM]. Stamnodes artemis Rindge, 1958: 1–2, figs 1–2, 13–14, syn. nov. Type locality: Upper Camp Pinery Canyon, Chiricahua Mountains, Cochise Co., Arizona, USA. [LACM, AMNH].

Stamnodes artemis – Ferguson 1983: 103 (checklist). — Furniss et al. 1988: 8. — Poole & Gentili 1996: 686 (checklist). — Scoble 1999: 901 (catalogue). — Scoble & Hausmann 2007 (online catalogue) — Pohl et al. 2016: 448 (checklist). — Rajaei et al. 2022 (online catalogue).

Stamnodes agapetica – Scoble 1999: 901 (catalogue). — Scoble & Hausmann 2007 (online catalogue). — Rajaei et al. 2022 (online catalogue).

Coenocalpe agapetica – Beutelspacher-Baigts 2013: 95, 257.

Taxonomic act

Stamnodes artemis is regarded as a new synonym of S. agapetica. Dyar’s original description of S. agapetica is weakly informative, but the types of S. artemis match in fine detail the holotype of S. agapetica. Genetic evidence further supports this new synonymy; a COI barcoded individual (BOLD Process ID: LNAUY473-19; GenBank OP898460) collected at 9000 ft in Hidalgo shows only a subtle genetic barcode divergence (~ 1%) from Arizona’s S. artemis. Although neither the holotype nor topotypical specimens of S. agapetica have been sequenced, the sequenced specimen from Hidalgo appears to be representative – Hidalgo and the type locality of Zacualpan are quite close. Rindge (1958) was probably unaware of S. agapetica when he described S. artemis, as it was classified in Coenocalpe Hübner and no prior work had consolidated the many Stamnodes species that were at that time spread across a few disparate genera.

Diagnostic remarks

Stamnodes agapetica is readily confused with S. apollo. It can be distinguished from S. apollo by its deep orange ground colour that lies in contrast to the lighter buff-orange colour of S. apollo and a forewing underside apex and hindwing underside that are maculated with red to brown scales that darken to form a medial transverse band on the hindwing underside; the same areas in S. apollo are cream to buff in colour with the hindwing underside showing subtle dark brown, transverse striations. Male genitalia offer the most diagnostic characters; S. agapetica has pointed lateral projections on the juxta (Fig. 60a) and only a single, large, spinose cornutus on the vesica (Fig. 60b), while S. apollo has a more rounded juxta lacking lateral projections (Fig. 59a) and a pair of large spinose cornuti on the vesica (Fig. 59b). It should be noted, the pointed lateral projections on the juxta in S. agapetica are not easily visualized in Fig. 60a.

Distribution

Mexico: so far as known, S. agapetica is the only species found throughout the Sierra Madre Occidental, Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, and Sierra Madre Oriental. Collections spanning this vast range are few, and gene flow is presumably maintained across the high elevation pine-fir forests that punctuate its mountainous habitat. The distribution of this species largely overlaps that of its sister, S. apollo, which may also have a similarly expansive, yet unconfirmed, Mexican distribution. USA: Stamnodes agapetica is only known from the Madrean sky islands of southeast Arizona in the USA.

Biology

Stamnodes agapetica is spring and summer active, March through July, and appears to be more common in later months. The immature stages remain unknown.

Molecular characterization

This species is represented in BOLD as BIN: BOLD:AAJ5005 (n = 5). At present, the average pairwise intraspecific distance is 0.2% and the pairwise maximum intraspecific distance is 0.52%. The distance to the nearest adjacent interspecific neighbour, Stamnodes apollo (n = 3), is around 7% (Fig. 94).