Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Argynnis egleis Behr, 1862. Type locality: "high up in the mountains", California [neotype specimen from vicinity of Gold Lake, Sierra County, California]
Argynnis montivaga Behr, 1863. Type locality: "widely spread through the Sierra...at different localities...from an elevation of 10,500 feet", California [designated neotype is same specimen as for Argynnis egleis Behr]
Argynnis astarte W. H. Edwards, 1864. Type locality: “mountainous regions of California” [neotype is same specimen as for Argynnis egleis Behr]
Speyeria egleis (Behr)
named subspecies:
Argynnis oweni W. H. Edwards, 1892. Type locality: Mt. Shasta, Siskiyou County, California, 7500ft
---= Speyeria egleis oweni (W. H. Edwards) dos Passos & Grey 1947
Argynnis utahensis Skinner, 1919. Type locality: City Creek Canyon, Salt Lake City, Utah
---= Speyeria egleis utahensis (Skinner) dos Passos & Grey 1947
Argynnis albrighti Gunder, 1932. Type locality: Highwood Mountains, Chouteau County, Montana
---= Speyeria egleis albrighti (Gunder) dos Passos & Grey 1947
Argynnis macdunnoughi Gunder, 1932. Type locality: Elkhorn Ranch Resort, Upper Gallatin Canyon, Gallatin County, Montana, 7000ft
---= Speyeria egleis macdunnoughi (Gunder) dos Passos & Grey 1947
Argynnis utahensis linda dos Passos & Grey, 1942. Type locality: Heyburn Peak, Sawtooth-Boise, Custer County, Idaho, 9500-10,000ft
---= Speyeria egleis linda (dos Passos & Grey) dos Passos & Grey 1947
Speyeria montivaga secreta dos Passos & Grey. Type locality: Estes Park area, Rocky Mountain National Park, Larimer County, Colorado [suspected by some recent authors to realy be Rabbit Ears Pass, Routt County, Colorado]
---= Speyeria egleis secreta (dos Passos & Grey) dos Passos & Grey 1947
Speyeria egleis toiyabe Howe, 1975. Type locality: Kingston Canyon, Toiyabe Range, Lander County, Nevada [=
Speyeria "hesperis" greyi Moeck, 1950. Type localty: Lamoille Cyn, Ruby Mts, Elko Co, NV, about 8,500ft; which is the older name of priority for this subspecies, but this name is presently incorrectly placed under
S. hesperis]
Speyeria egleis moecki Hammond & Dornfeld, 1983. Type locality: Skookum Meadow, Walker Rim, Klamath County, Oregon
Speyeria egleis mattooni J. Emmel & T. Emmel, 1998. Type locality: U.S. Forest Service Road 40S01, Dry Lake Mountain, Siskiyou Mountains, Siskiyou County, California
Speyeria egleis reidi Austin, 1998. Type locality: T13N R68E, Wheeler Peak Campground, Snake Range, White Pine County, Nevada [basically inseparable from ssp. toiyabe, but a higher percentage of specimens average darker below]
Speyeria egleis yolaboli J. Emmel & T. Emmel, 1998. Type locality: South Yolla Bolly Mountain, Tehama County, California
Identification
As with most western Speyeria, highly variable, and can be confused with several other species.
Generally
S. egleis has wings rather short and broad; dorsal dark pattern relatively "delicate" and less fused together as compared to most related species, without well-developed dark outer margin (except in some females), and ground color usually relatively bright orangey with pale markings showing through only faintly from below; lower hind wing with marginal pale spots somewhat "squashed" looking and rounded on the inner margin, capped by usually rounded dark border that tends to be somewhat diffuse on the inner edge (both often more triangular in several related species); ventral disk of front wings usually predominately pale tan-brown (often much more "warm" reddish, orange, or pinkish in similar species), and disk of hind wing light to medium brown with lots of paler suffusion (but sometimes slightly greenish or, in Rockies distinctly darker and reddish); hind wing with
humeral lobe narrower and less acutely angled than in all other similar species. Many additional traits will help on a regional basis, but most cannot be applied equally to the entire species.
In Rockies S. egleis is probably most likely to be confused with S. hesperis. S. hesperis typically has slightly more elongate wings, crisper markings below, the veins of the hind wing below more distinctly (but narrowly) edged in dark color, the marginal pale spots and their dark caps more distinctly triangular; also, the HW humeral lobe is wider and more sharply angled. S. hesperis commonly averages a bit darker than S. egleis and larger in a given region, but the overall geographic variation in coloring seen in the two species is roughly parallel. S. hesperis is most often unsilvered below in areas of overlap in the Blue Mountains, Great Basin, and parts of the Rockies, while S. egleis is not, but in some areas S. hesperis is sometimes or always silvered as well.
Further west, where ventral coloring is usually paler, S. zerene is perhaps most similar. It usually has somewhat more elongate wings; usually has a more strongly developed dark pattern above with broader markings; and pale spots of lower hind wings tend to be larger and more elongate. The humeral lobe of the hind wing is more enlarged on S. zerene.
Range
Western U.S. in mountain areas west of the Great Plains; north from Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California; south of Canada. Barely entering se. British Columbia and perhaps sw. Alberta, but not officially verified from either province.
Habitat
Mostly in smallish sunny openings, hollows, glades, etc. in otherwise cool forested areas; often associated with Aspen and Bracken. Usually habitats are of a fairly moist verdent nature.
Remarks
Subspecies are sometimes not separable except by knowing locality found. The value and extent of application of some names (as true in many Speyeria species) can be debated, as geographically adjacent subspecies often tend to be extremely similar, and in some cases there is no separation between them. Generally those from desert mountain ranges, particularly in the eastern Great Basin, are the palest in coloring, and sometimes (particularly northward) there is a greenish tinge below. Those from the northern coastal mountains and especially from the Southern Rocky Mountains tend to be the darkest, and especially in the Rockies may be quite reddish below. Most populations have the pale spots below silvered, but in northwest California and adjacent Oregon unsilvered individuals dominate some populations.
Speyeria egleis seems to generally be more rare than other species of Speyeria, and is one of the least often encountered; however, it occurs in localized colonies where it may be quite numerous.
