Post by 58chevy on Apr 30, 2021 11:16:40 GMT -8
I ran across some comments by the late Charles Bordelon from 2006 regarding tiger swallowtail subspecies in the southern part of Texas. If anybody out there is knowledgeable about this subject, it would be interesting to hear your comments. Here's what Bordelon had to say:
Form garcia, formerly considered a ssp. of P. glaucus, has been placed as a ssp. of P. alexiares (by lepidopterist Nick Grishin). Lepidopterist Charlie Sassine captured an unusual-looking tiger in Willacy Co., TX that seems to be a mystery. It is the only voucher specimen of its type. It doesn't fit the the parameters for P. alexiares garcia, but isn't a typical P. glaucus either. It seems to be a blend of alexiares and coastal ssp. P. glaucus maynardi, but it is much suffused. While many consider maynardi to be purely Floridian, that is not the case. Coastal material is intergradational into southeast Texas. I assume it feeds on Fraxinus, but its occurrence in south Texas is fleeting. It certainly requires more attention. Additional specimens would be very helpful.
Form garcia, formerly considered a ssp. of P. glaucus, has been placed as a ssp. of P. alexiares (by lepidopterist Nick Grishin). Lepidopterist Charlie Sassine captured an unusual-looking tiger in Willacy Co., TX that seems to be a mystery. It is the only voucher specimen of its type. It doesn't fit the the parameters for P. alexiares garcia, but isn't a typical P. glaucus either. It seems to be a blend of alexiares and coastal ssp. P. glaucus maynardi, but it is much suffused. While many consider maynardi to be purely Floridian, that is not the case. Coastal material is intergradational into southeast Texas. I assume it feeds on Fraxinus, but its occurrence in south Texas is fleeting. It certainly requires more attention. Additional specimens would be very helpful.
