New butterfly species discovered nearly 60 years

Summary: A butterfly collected by a teenager in Mexico nearly 60 years ago has been described as a new species.

Full story: After collecting the new species as a 17-year-old in Mexico nearly 60 years ago, Thomas Emmel described the butterfly as 'medium-sized, velvety brown with row of odd-shaped blue ocelli on hind wings, underside very colorful with bands.'In 1959, a then-teenage lepidopterist Thomas Emmel collected 13 fawn-colored butterflies in the highlands of Mexico.It's a fitting tribute to a dedicated scientist and his lifetime devotion to understanding butterflies and sharing his knowledge and passion with the world.

"He's the only person who ever collected it, and it was on this remarkable expedition when he was 17 years old," said Warren, senior collections manager of the Florida Museum of Natural History's McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity at UF.

Warren and a team of colleagues published the species name and description today in Zootaxa.