wingspan : male 43/45, female 44/47 mm
Oleria padilla, from San Pedro de la Bendita to Guayquichuma and at Cajanuma.
Taxonomy works on a binary basis, a butterflies population has to be either ssp X or ssp Z, there is no other choice ; but Nature does not work that way !
as far as we know
- typical Oleria padilla padilla from NW Ecuador have 1-a solid black FW apex, sometimes with two tiny white dots , 2-a strong white stripe that crosses the whole FW, 3-an "empty" FW cell,
- typical Oleria padilla cajamarcencis from Cajamarca have 1-some black at the apex, with the two white dots coelascing with the hyaline part of the wing, turning from dots to dents, 2-a much reduced white stripe, 3-a perpendicular black line crossing the FW cell (females only)
- our specimens from the limits between Loja and el Oro provinces are obviously variable, closer to padilla than to cajamarcensis and lost in a no man's land between these two subspecies (see new facts page).
this is a problem with hundreds of species, so it is a problem entomologists should address.
from left to right : padilla padilla - Pichincha, 'intermedia" - area Loja Guayquichuma, cajamarcensis - Vilcabamba
