Volume 2025
	Issue 2

Toward a revised checklist of the Western Palearctic butterflies, hyperlinked to the original descriptions at species, genus and family level (Lepidoptera, Papilionoidea) Part I: Rationale and framework for the Papilionidae.
Taymans Michel & Cuvelier Sylvain
AWPL 2025(1): 31-37 — DOI 10.5281/zenodo.15723397
Numerous synonymous checklists or catalogs have been published for various countries or a more or less extensive region. These generally include a detailed list of species, in the genus/species binary format, followed by the name of the author and the date of publication. There are often more or less significant discrepancies among checklists. These differences are sometimes due to typing errors during editing but more often, they are the result of the taxonomic views of the authors. In the absence of an unanimously accepted list, professional or amateur lepidopterists have no clear guidelines regarding which reference to use in their work. In this context, it seemed useful to establish an exhaustive list containing the complete taxonomic references of all butterfly (Papilionoidea) species from the Western Palearctic. This list is published as an internet webpage. This choice was dictated by the technical possibility to include links leading the reader with a simple click to pages related to the original description of the taxa. This will allow users to verify the components of the taxon and have direct access to the original text. Each species has been placed in the different levels of the zoological classification from order to subgenus, including superfamily, family, subfamily, tribe, subtribe and genus and including the author, the year, the original combination, the type locality, the reference of the original publication and the Internet link(s). This project thus completes three recently published lists, which lacked links to the original descriptions of species or type localities. These are: (i) an updated checklist for European butterflies (Wiemers et al. 2018) (ii) a new comprehensive trait database for Europeand and Maghreb butterflies, Papilionoidea. (Middleton-Welling et al. 2020) (iii) the Atlas of mitochondrial genetic diversity for Western Palearctic butterflies (Dapporto et al. 2022) which also deal with systematics. Despite the objective efforts to develop the most reliable list possible, one must be aware that certain choices linked to the taxon, the author's references, the year of publication or its place in the classification may be subject of debate and revision. The authors therefore hope that the list will trigger numerous constructive criticisms in order to produce a list that generates the highest possible consensus among the lepidopterist´s community and it is therefore a useful tool. On the other hand, in recent years a number of new species have been described, often as a result of in-depth phylogenetic studies, based on molecular analyses. And it is also very likely that the validity or status of certain species will be reviewed when the techniques and methods of investigation are refined. It is therefore planned that the website will be updated regularly according to feedback, comments and new scientific publications.

Exploration of Mount Žeden and discovery of Proterebia phegea (Borkhausen, 1788), a new species for the fauna of North Macedonia. Brief summary of current knowledge on Proterebia phegea.
Taymans Michel & Cuvelier Sylvain
AWPL 2025(2): 21-30 — DOI 10.5281/zenodo.15723544
The butterfly species Proterebia phegea (Borkhausen, 1788), previously unrecorded in North Macedonia, was discovered during field surveys on Mount Žeden in April 2025. This finding extends the known range of the species in the Balkan Peninsula, which includes populations in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, and Greece. Mount Žeden, located approximately 20 km west of Skopje, is characterised by a continental Mediterranean climate and diverse karstic topography, providing a unique habitat for various butterfly species. The discovery of P. phegea on Mount Žeden contributes to the understanding of the species' distribution and highlights the importance of this area for butterfly conservation.

Synonymy of Pseudochazara misjai and Pseudochazara tisiphone dibra: taxonomic reassessment of an Albanian butterfly population. Is the glass half full or half empty? An inconvenient truth.
Cuvelier Sylvain, Marafi Mohammad AJ & Paparisto Anila
AWPL 2025(2): 1-20 — DOI 10.5281/zenodo.15492634
A population of Pseudochazara butterflies from Albania was formally described as the subspecies Pseudochazara tisiphone dibra on January 24, 2025. However, in a separate publication on March 1, 2025, the same population was described as a distinct species, Pseudochazara misjai. This paper reassesses the taxonomic status of the population, critically evaluating the evidence supporting both descriptions. Based on a careful review of morphological, climatic, ecological, and molecular data, we propose that Pseudochazara misjai is a junior synonym of Pseudochazara tisiphone dibra, which should remain the valid name for the population. This decision follows the guidelines of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN), prioritizing the earlier description to maintain nomenclatural stability. The current study furthermore addresses inaccuracies and oversights in the publication of March 1, 2025, and reviews updates published between 2018 and January 9, 2025 on the dynamic website Fluturat e Shqipërisë, which includes a Monograph on Pseudochazara tisiphone.