Cutting the Nomenclatural Gordian Knot around Pyrgus Carthami (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae)

The name Papilio fritillarius Poda, 1761, is shown to be a nomen dubium. It has caused much confusion and has been applied to five or six different species since the first publication and to three different species in the last 40 years. To put an end to the confusion a neotype is designated. For the neotype a specimen has been selected of the species currently known as Pyrgus malvae (Linnaeus), thus making Papilio fritillarius Poda, 1761, a junior subjective synonym of Papilio malvae Linnaeus, 1758. Consequently, Poda's name can no longer be used for the species named Papilio carthami by Hübner, [1813] and now currently placed in the genus Pyrgus. The same species was named Papilio malvae maior by Fabricius (1787) and for reasons of priority Hübner's name should fall for it. However, maior Fabricius has never been used as the valid name for the species and in this century has only been mentioned three times in synonymy. Therefore, a request will be submitted to the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature to suppress the name, thus not only saving Papilio carthami Hübner (now placed in Pyrgus) but also Syrichthus serratulae major Staudinger, 1878 (currently considered a subspecies of Pyrgus serratulae (Ramburs)), which would be in need of another name if Pyrgus maior (Fabricius) would remain the senior synonym of Pyrgus carthami (Hübner).