Zerene eurydice
Zerene eurydice, the California dogface butterfly, belongs to the family Pieridae and is a sister genus to Colias. The Zerene eurydice and the Colias both share the "characteristic of having yellow-orange and black wing coordination." Additionally the,"Colias and Zerene eurydice males have bright UV patterns on their wings." There are only two species of the Zerene, the Zerene eurydice, and the Zerene cesonia, also known as the Southern dogface. A study that collected mitochondrial DNA from various Colias butterfly species found that Z. eurydice had decreased divergence from the ingroup, highlighting how closely related these two genera are. This species is endemic to California, and is California's state insect. The California dogface butterfly varies in its wing color and pattern.
California dogface butterfly | |
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Female | |
Male | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Lepidoptera |
Family: | Pieridae |
Genus: | Zerene |
Species: | Z. eurydice |
Binomial name | |
Zerene eurydice (Boisduval, 1855) | |
Synonyms | |
Colias eurydice Boisduval, 1855 |