New Green-Eyed Butterfly Discovered in Texas
Posted on May 28, 2013
A new butterfly species with striking olive green eyes has been discovered in Texas. The butterfly was given the common name Vicroy's Ministreak and the scientific name Ministrymon janevicroy. Scientists say the butterfly may be the last truly distinctive butterfly species to be discovered in the United States.
Individuals of Vicroy's Ministreak were placed in the Smithsonian entomology collections a century ago, but went unrecognized because it was confused with the similar-looking Gray Ministreak. The newly identified butterfly has olive-green eyes, while the Gray Ministreak has dark brown/black eyes.
Jeffrey Glassberg, President of the North American Butterfly Association, discovered Vicroy's Ministreak and named it after his wife, Jane Vicroy Scott. Glassberg and Bob Robbins, the butterfly curator at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC, authored a paper on the butterfly, which has been published in Zookeys.