Checkerspot I.D.?

[boghaunter1]

Hello all... need some help please,

I've been going through/rearranging/updating my SK butterfly list, based on my collection, & have no clue as to this unidentified Checkerspot.... it is a female that was collected in Canada, SW Saskatchewan, in the Cypress Hills, (very close to the Alberta border), on 04 July 1991. It's ventral surface is so different than the other 2 ssp. I have - Euphydryas a. anicia & E. a. bernadetta (even though it looks like E. a. bernadetta on the dorsal side)....

Checkerspot Unknown Dorsal.jpg (355.1 KiB) Viewed 144 times

Checkerspot Unknown Ventral.jpg (355.64 KiB) Viewed 144 times

Thanks in advance!! John K.

[MikeH]

I don't think you will find a better name than bernadetta, every population has extreme examples.

Compare with this one

[boghaunter1]

Hi Mike,

Thanks for the quick reply... I think you are correct... looks like a good match. I sent the same photos to another fellow who is writing a new book on SK butterflies; the last SK butterfly book was published in 1976 & is really outdated, & he came to the same conclusion. Checkerspots are extremely variable, even within a local population, & this one just has really enhanced white ventral markings. I think there are something like 24 named ssp. of E. anicia alone! I have a good series of these & this one female just stood out from all of the more "normal" looking females (like the one you showed). Thanks again!

John K.