Standardized Butterfly Names / Monarchs

[Mark Walker]

Some notes:

- The first Lep related word coming out of my then 3 year old daughter was
"Monarch".  This word applied first to all butterflies, and then to all
orange butterflies, and, finally, very accurately to D. plexippus (and with
much paternal pride, completely distinguishable from Limenitis [Basilarchia]
archippus).  Her second related Lep word was "Dogface".  There was never any
confusion here, although she aptly applied the term to individuals of both
Colias [Zerene] eurydice and Colias [Zerene] cesonia.  What can I say - she
loves dogs, and these butterflies are a fascinating curiosity.  Her third
butterfly name was "Sister", a bit sloppy in reference to both Adelpha
bredowii and Limenitis [Basilarchia] lorquini), her fourth was "Tiger
Swallowtail" (although today, she prefers Eurytides marcellus), her fifth
was "Painted Lady" (which, to her discredit, she still blurs across each of
Vanessa virginiensis, Vanessa cardui, Vanessa annabella), and her sixth was
"Orange Tip" (partially biased by her father's extended "Anthocharis"
period), again with an exacting taxonomy.  She is now 7, but we have yet to
start on the scientific names...

- Call me "retentive", eccentric, bizarre, or even psychotic (in whatever
language), but I must admit that part of what I enjoy so much about my
passion with Leps is the length of time I spend (each night)
reading/referencing/sorting/translating the spaghetti of scientific and
common names that accompany the equally mind boggling variety I find in the
magnificent world of Lepidoptera.  I get significant pleasure from trying to
be proficient with my scientific classification (although I, too, become
somewhat timid when pronunciating in public).  The bottom line from my
perspective - whatever the so-called "experts" (young or old) want to call
them is all right with me.  Just keep publishing those books...

Mark Walker
Castleton, VT