Nymphalidae phylogeny
The diversity in form and life style has meant that the phylogenetic relationships of nymphalids has been contentious. This in turn has meant that there has been no consensus on the classification of the group, with some authors splitting the family into up to 9 different families! The lack of a good phylogenetic hypothesis has also meant that the evolutionary history of the group has been shrouded in mystery. Recent molecular and morphological work is bringing light to the question of how different species and groups of species are related to each other. The mystery is being unravelled!
Several studies have looked at the relationships of the major lineages of Nymphalidae. A consensus is emerging from these studies and is shown in the diagram below. The phylogenetic relationships of all genera in Nymphalidae are still uncertain for the most part, but studies are being conducted to resolve the major issues.
By clicking on the picture of the butterfly, you can have a closer look at relationships of lineages within the major lineages.
These pages are structured in a way that allows one to click through the major clades. As there are very few species-level phylogenies available, most of the clades go down to the genus-level only. For each clade, there is information on the current state of knowledge for the clade, including references to primary literature.