[Leps-l] Any Latin authorities on the list?

[Steve Plumb]

I wondered why a butterfly would have a name that includes "noise".  With a little searching I came up with this on page 157 of Scudder's "Brief guide to the commoner butterflies of the northern United States and Canada".

later in life it makes a larger nest from one or more leaves after the habit of Epargyreus; it is very cleanly, always ejecting its excrement outside its nest with a snap which sends it to a distance.

I didn't find anything similar in descriptions of other Thorybes.  The use of Thorybes certainly predates this reference.   The Southern Cloudywing, Thorybes bathyllus was described by J.E. Smith in 1797.

Just curious,

Steve Plumb
455 E Pond Rd
Nobleboro, ME 04555

207 563-8953

On Apr 29, 2013, at 10:29 AM, Herb Wilson wrote:

> Hi Jim,
> 
> Thorbybes comes from the Greek thorybos, meaning noise.  Pylades means faithful friend; Pylades was a friend of Orestes.
> 
> Best,
> 
> Herb
> 
> Dr. Herb Wilson 
> Department of Biology 
> 5739 Mayflower Hill Drive 
> Colby College 
> Waterville, ME  04901 
> 
> Phone:        (207) 859-5739                E-mail: whwilson at colby.edu 
> FAX:           (207) 859-5705 
> Web sites:    http://web.colby.edu/whwilson/ 
>                    http://web.colby.edu/mainebirds/ 
> 
> There are some who can live without wild things and some who cannot.  
> Aldo Leopold, Sand County Almanac
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Mon, Apr 29, 2013 at 9:23 AM, Jim Mason <jim at gpnc.org> wrote:
> What is the translation of Thorybes pylades?
> 
>  
> 
> Jim Mason, Naturalist
> 
> Jim at gpnc.org
> 
> Great Plains Nature Center
> 
> 6232 E. 29th Street North
> 
> Wichita, KS 67220-2200
> 
> 316-683-5499 x103 - voice
> 
> 316-688-9555 - fax
> 
> www.gpnc.org
> 
>  
> 
> 
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