Pierinae

Braby, Michael F., 2005, Provisional checklist of genera of the Pieridae (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea), Zootaxa 832, pp. 1-16 : 9

Pierinae : Anthocharidini

Klots (1933) recommended that Falcapica Klots be adopted as a subgenus of the Holarctic Anthocharis Boisduval, Rambur, Duménil & Graslin to accommodate a small group of species in which the apex of the forewing is falcate. The taxon is otherwise poorly differentiated, and Bridges (1988) indicated that Falcapica is a synonym of Paramidea Kuznetzov. Klots (1933) also proposed that the northern African­Palaearctic Elphinstonia Klots (with type species charlonia Donzel ) be regarded as a subgenus of Euchloe Hübner. Ackery et al. (1995) , however, discarded this concept and treated Elphinstonia as a synonym of Euchloe .

Klots (1933: 173) tentatively treated the Neotropical taxa Mathania Oberthür and Cunizza Grote as subgenera of Hesperocharis C. Felder , although acknowledged that evidence supporting such an arrangement was weak. Lamas (2005), however, provisionally treated Mathania and Cunizza as distinct genera pending further investigation of their monophyly. A recent molecular analysis (Braby et al., unpublished data) showed that Hesperocharis , Cunizza and Mathania comprise a well­supported monophyletic group with the following relationship: Cunizza + ( Hesperocharis + Mathania ). Klots (1933: 173), in discussing the status of Mathania and Cunizza , stated that “it is apparent that the former separations of these genera have been based upon very superficial characters, and that in a broad classification their positions as even subgenera are none too secure…there remain only pattern characters which are hardly of the caliber required for generic or even subgeneric separation.” The pupal morphology of Hesperocharis and Mathania are remarkably similar (Braby & Nishida, unpublished data) and it may be wiser to treat Mathania , and probably Cunizza , as subordinate taxa of Hesperocharis . However, a detailed systematic revision of the group is needed before they are placed in synonymy or treated as subgenera.