Volume 2026
	Issue 2

A systematic and synonymic list of the Riodinidae and the Lycaenidae (part 1) of Western Palearctic butterflies hyperlinked to the original descriptions (Lepidoptera, Papilionoidea)
Taymans Michel & Cuvelier Sylvain
AWPL 2026(2): 1-26 — DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20156133
The present paper deals with the classification of the West Palaearctic representatives of the families Riodinidae and Lycaenidae, with particular emphasis on the subfamily Nemeobiinae and on three subfamilies of Lycaenidae: Aphnaeinae, Lycaeninae and Theclinae. Within the West Palaearctic fauna, Nemeobiinae is represented by a single species only, whereas Lycaenidae comprises a considerably larger number of taxa and several additional subfamilies. Owing to this diversity, the remaining West Palaearctic subfamilies of Lycaenidae will be treated separately in subsequent papers.
The habitus generally allows an easy identification of most species included in these groups. However, the examination of genitalia remains necessary in certain cases, particularly within the genus Callophrys, or for distinguishing closely related taxa such as Lycaena candens and L. hippothoe.
Despite the considerable progress achieved in recent years, several taxonomic and systematic problems still remain unresolved. Further phylogenetic studies will be required to clarify the specific or subspecific status of several taxa and to provide a more satisfactory generic arrangement, especially within the tribes Lycaenini and Eumaeini. Since these groups include closely related species occurring in both the Palaearctic and Nearctic regions, future studies should adopt a comprehensive approach including taxa from the entire Holarctic region in order to achieve a more stable and natural classification.
Several species groups continue to present substantial taxonomic difficulties, and the status of some taxa remains uncertain, whether they should be regarded as distinct species, subspecies, or evolutionary significant units (ESUs). This uncertainty applies, for example, to taxa such as Lycaena heracleana, Cigaritis estherae and Satyrium vandalusica.
Regular updates to a comprehensive systematic and synonymic reference list are therefore essential. A dynamic, continuously maintained list offers clear advantages over fixed, paper-based publications, which cannot be revised once issued and may become outdated relatively quickly as new taxonomic insights emerge.

Toward a revised checklist of the Western Palearctic butterflies, hyperlinked to the original descriptions at species, genus and family level (Lepidoptera, Papilionoidea)
Part V: Rationale and framework for the Lycaenidae
Taymans Michel & Cuvelier Sylvain
AWPL 2026(2): 27-35 — DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20759567
The present article aims to clarify and justify the classification adopted in the checklist for the subfamily Polyommatinae of the family Lycaenidae, with the exception of the tribe Polyommatini, which will be treated in a subsequent paper. Despite extensive taxonomic and phylogenetic research, the internal classification of Lycaenidae remains only partially resolved. In particular, the rank and delimitation of the major lineages traditionally recognised as subfamilies have been interpreted differently by various authors, reflecting differences in the morphological, molecular, and combined datasets on which their conclusions are based. As a result, alternative classifications continue to coexist in the literature, and some aspects of the higher-level taxonomy of the family remain subjects of ongoing debate.
Over the past decades, numerous phylogenetic studies have advanced competing hypotheses concerning the relationships among these groups. Analyses based on morphological characters, molecular data, or combinations of both have yielded alternative arrangements of the major clades and have often assigned them different taxonomic ranks, recognising them either as subfamilies or as tribes within more inclusive classifications. As a consequence, no single classification has gained universal acceptance, and the circumscription, placement, and relationships of several groups remain subjects of ongoing debate.In addition, some recent phylogenetic studies have proposed generic delimitations based primarily on molecular evidence, with limited consideration of morphological, ecological, biogeographical, or nomenclatural criteria. Although such approaches have provided valuable insights into evolutionary relationships, they may also contribute to nomenclatural instability when taxonomic changes are introduced without sufficient integration of other lines of evidence.

A second confirmed locality of Kirinia climene (Esper, [1783]) in Albania: Mount Pashtrik, with notes on its distribution in the Balkans and the Republic of Moldova
Cuvelier Sylvain
AWPL 2026(2): 36-40 — DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18986391
Kirinia climene (Esper, [1783]) is a rarely recorded Satyrinae butterfly distributed from the Middle East to the Balkans. In Albania, it was previously known from a historical record from Mount Pashtrik. In 2023, Cuvelier and Dincă reported the species near Lake Prespa, and here we add a second confirmed locality for Albania, based on a 2025 specimen from Mount Pashtrik (1.600 m a.s.l.), confirming its persistence after more than a century.
Its Balkan distribution remains fragmented, with strongholds in Serbia and northern Greece, and only historical records in Romania (Banat) and the Republic of Moldova.