Researchers from the Jagiellonian University (UJ) in Krakow have announced the discovery of a new species of butterfly. Found only in the Peruvian Andes, the insect has been given the Latin name Catasticta copernicus. In this way, the researchers pay tribute to Nicolaus Copernicus on the 550th anniversary of his birth.

Catasticta is a diverse genus of butterflies in the Pieridae family, in which more than 100 species have so far been distinguished and described. 

Researchers from the UJ have identified its new species. Catasticta copernicus is found at the forest edge at an altitude of about 3,500 m in the Peruvian part of the Andes. The males are strongly territorial and chase other insects away from where they wait for the females. They choose strategic positions above the treetops or above a sharp mountain ridge and actively guard it during the hours of noon.

The species Catasticta copernicus is described in the scientific journal Zootaxa: https://www.mapress.com/zt/article/view/zootaxa.5336.4.4