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Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

John Burns

Curator Emeritus of Lepidoptera
Department / Division
Entomology
Education
  • AB (Biology) Johns Hopkins Univ. 
  • MA (Zoology) UC-Berkeley
  • PhD (Zoology) UC-Berkeley
Research Interests

I am mainly interested in problems at and around the species level, in the process of speciation, and in evolution; and I work mostly on a family of distinctive butterflies called skippers.  With perhaps as many as 5,000 species worldwide, skippers are especially rich in species in the New World tropics.

Publications
Journal Article
  • Bächtold, Alexandra, Kaminski, Lucas A., Magaldi, Luiza M., Oliveira, Paulo S., Del-Claro, Kleber, Janzen, Daniel H., Burns, John M., Grishin, Nick, Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, Hallwachs, Winnie, and Freitas, André V. L. 2017. "Integrative data helps the assessment of a butterfly within the Udranomia kikkawai species complex (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae): Immature stages, natural history, and molecular evidence." Zoologischer Anzeiger - A Journal of Comparative Zoology, 266 169–176. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcz.2016.11.009.
  • Ge, Dengteng, Wu, Gaoxiang, Yang, Lili, Kim, Hye-Na, Hallwachs, Winnie, Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., and Yang, Shu. 2017. "Varying and unchanging whiteness on the wings of dusk-active and shade-inhabiting Carystoides escalantei butterflies." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 114, (28) 7379–7384. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1701017114.
  • Janzen, Daniel H., Burns, John M., Cong, Qian, Hallwachs, Winnie, Dapkey, Tanya, Manjunath, Ramya, Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, Hebert, Paul D. N., and Grishin, Nick V. 2017. "Nuclear genomes distinguish cryptic species suggested by their DNA barcodes and ecology." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 114, (31) 8313–8318. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1621504114.
  • Burns, John M. 2015. "Speciation in an Insular Sand Dune Habitat: Atrytonopsis (Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae)-Mainly from the Southwestern United States and Mexico-Off the North Carolina Coast." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 69, (4) 275–292. https://doi.org/10.18473/lepi.69i4.a4.
  • Bertrand, Claudia, Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Burns, John M., Gibson, Joel F., Shokralla, Shadi, and Hajibabaei, Mehrdad. 2014. "Mitochondrial and nuclear phylogenetic analysis with Sanger and next-generation sequencing shows that, in Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, northwestern Costa Rica, the skipper butterfly named Urbanus belli (family Hesperiidae) comprises three morphologically cryptic species." Bmc Evolutionary Biology, 14 153–153. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2148-14-153.
  • Fernandez-Triana, Jose L., Whitfield, James B., Rodriguez, Josephine J., Smith, M. Alex, Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, Burns, John M., Solis, M. Alma, Brown, John W., Cardinal, Sophie, Goulet, Henri, and Hebert, Paul D. N. 2014. "Review of Apanteles sensu stricto (Hymenoptera, Braconidae, Microgastrinae) from Area de Conservación Guanacaste, northwestern Costa Rica, with keys to all described species from Mesoamerica." ZooKeys, 383, (Special issue) 1–565. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.383.6418.
  • Grishin, Nick V., Burns, John M., Brockmann, Ernst, Hallwachs, Winnie D., and Janzen, Daniel H. 2014. "A Cryptic New Jemadia (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae: Pyrrhopygini) from Costa Rica and Panama with a Subtly Distinctive Combination of Blue Rays and White Bands." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 68, (4) 232–247.
  • Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., and Hajibabaei, Mehrdad. 2013. "DNA Barcodes Reveal Yet Another New Species of Venada (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) in Northwestern Costa Rica." Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 115, (1) 37–47. https://doi.org/10.4289/0013-8797.115.1.37.
  • Grishin, Nick V., Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., and Hajibabaei, Mehrdad. 2013. "Oxynetra: Facies and DNA barcodes point to a new species from Costa Rica (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae: Pyrrhopygini)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 67, (1) 1–14.
  • Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Burns, John M., Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, Bertrand, Claudia, and Hebert, Paul D. N. 2011. "Reading the Complex Skipper Butterfly Fauna of One Tropical Place." Plos One, 6, (8) 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0019874.
  • Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., and Hallwachs, Winnie D. 2010. "Of Many Similar Species in the Neotropical Genus Porphyrogenes (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae), a New One, Repeatedly Reared in Costa Rica, is Relatively Distinct." Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 112, (1) 32–42. https://doi.org/10.4289/0013-8797.112.1.32.
  • Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, and Hebert, Paul D. N. 2010. "Genitalia, DNA barcodes, larval facies, and foodplants place the mimetic species Neoxeniades molion in Rhinthon (Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 64, (2) 69–78.
  • Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, and Hebert, Paul D. N. 2010. "Genitalia, DNA barcodes, larval facies, and foodplants place the mimetic species Neoxeniades molion in Rhinthon (Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae)." Journal of The Lepidopterists' Society, 64, (2) 69–78.
  • Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., and Burns, John M. 2010. "A tropical horde of counterfeit predator eyes." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 107, (26) 11659–11665. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0912122107.
  • Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Hajibabaei, Mehrdad, and Hebert, Paul D. N. 2009. "Genitalia, DNA barcodes, and life histories synonymize Telles with Thracides--a genus in which Telles arcalaus looks out of place (Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 63, (3) 141–153.
  • Janzen, Daniel H., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Blandin, Patrick, Burns, John M., Cadiou, Jean-Marie, Chacon, Isidro, Dapkey, Tanya, Deans, Andrew R., Epstein, Marc E., Espinoza, B., Franclemont, J., Haber, W., Hajibabaei, M., Hallwachs, J., Hebert, Paul D. N., Gauld, I. D., Harvey, D., Hausmann, A., Kitching, Ian, Lafontaine, D., Landry, J. F., Lemaire, C., Miller, Jacqueline Y., Miller, James S., Miller, Lee et al. 2009. "Integration of DNA barcoding into an ongoing inventory of complex tropical biodiversity." Molecular Ecology Resources, 9, (S1) 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-0998.2009.02628.x.
  • Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., Hajibabaei, M., Hallwachs, Winnie D., and Hebert, P. D. N. 2008. "DNA barcodes and cryptic species of skipper butterflies in the genus Perichares in Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, Costa Rica." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 105, (17) 6350–6355. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0712181105.
  • Fordyce, J. A., Forister, M. L., Nice, C. C., Burns, John M., and Shapiro, A. M. 2008. "Patterns of genetic variation between the checkered skippers Pyrgus communis and Pyrgus albescens (Lepidoptera : hesperiidae)." Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 101, (4) 794–800. https://doi.org/10.1603/0013-8746(2008)101[794:POGVBT]2.0.CO;2.
  • Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., Hajibabaei, M., Hallwachs, Winnie D., and Hebert, P. D. N. 2007. "DNA barcodes of closely related (but morphologically and ecologically distinct) species of skipper butterflies (Hesperiidae) can differ by only one to three nucleotides." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 61, (3) 138–153.
  • Collins, M. M., Powell, J. A., Burns, John M., and Opler, P. A. 2006. "Remembering Don MacNeill [obituary]." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 60 107–114.
  • Hajibabael, M., Janzen, Daniel H., Burns, John M., and Hebert, D. N. 2006. "DNA barcodes distinguish species of tropical Lepidoptera." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 103, (4) 968–971.
  • Burns, John M. and Janzen, Daniel H. 2005. "What's in a name? Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Pyrginae: Telemiades Hubner 1819 [Pyrdalus Mabille 1903]: new combinations Telemiades corbulo (Stoll) and Telemiades oiclus (Mabille)--and more." Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 107 770–781.
  • Burns, John M. and Janzen, Daniel H. 2005. "Pan-neotropical genus Venada (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae) is not monotypic: Four new species occur on one volcano in the Area de Conservacion Guanacaste, Costa Rica." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 59 19–34.
  • Janzen, Daniel H., Hajibabaei, M., Burns, John M., Hallwachs, Winnie D., Remigio, E., and Hebert, D. N. 2005. "Wedding biodiversity inventory of a large and complex Lepidoptera fauna with DNA barcoding." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences, 360 1835–1845.
  • Hebert, P. D. N., Penton, E. H., Burns, John M., Janzen, Daniel H., and Hallwachs, Winnie D. 2004. "Ten species in one: DNA barcoding reveals cryptic species in the neotropical skipper butterfly Astraptes fulgerator." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 101 14812–14817.
  • Burns, John M. and Janzen, Daniel H. 1999. "Drephalys: Division of this Showy Neotropical Genus, Plus a New Species and the Immatures and Food Plants of Two Species from Costa Rican Dry Forest (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 53, (3) 77–89.
  • Burns, John M. 1998. "Pseydodrephalys: A New Genus Comprising Three Showy, Neotropical Species (One New) Removed From--And Quite Remote From--Drephalys (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 52, (4) 364–380.
  • Janzen, Daniel H., Sharkey, M. J., and Burns, John M. 1998. "Parasitization Biology of a New Species of Braconidae (Hymenoptera) Feeding on the Larvae of Costa Rican Dry Forest Skippers (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Pyrginae)." Tropical Lepidoptera, 9 33–41.
  • Burns, John M. 1997. "Presidential Address 1996: On the Beauties, Uses, Variation, and Handling of Genitalia." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 51, (1) 1–8.
  • Burns, John M. 1996. "Genitalia and the proper genus: Codatractus gets mysie and uvydixa--in a compact cyda group--as well as a hysterectomy, while Cephise gets part of Polythrix (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 50 173–216.
  • Burns, John M. 1995. "John M. Burns, new president of the Lepidopterists' Society." News of the Lepidopterists' Society, 4 79–80.
  • Burns, John M. 1994. "The Sex of Duskywings." American Butterflies, 2, (3) 19.
  • Burns, John M. 1994. "Genitalia at the Generic Level: Atrytone Restricted, Anatrytone Resurrected, New Genus Quasimellana--and Yes! We Have No Mellanas." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 48, (4) 273–337.
  • Burns, John M. 1994. "Split Skippers: Mexican Genus Poanopsis Goes in the Origenes Group--and Yvretta Forms the Rhesus Group--of Polites (Hesperiidae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 48, (1) 24–45.
  • Burns, John M. 1992. "Genitalic Recasting of Poanes and Paratrytone (Hesperiidae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 46, (1) 1–23.
  • Burns, John M. 1992. "Genitalic Characterization, Enlargement, and Reassociation of Neotropical Hesperiine Genus Halotus (Hesperiidae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 46, (3) 182–194.
  • Burns, John M. 1990. "Amblyscirtes: Problems with Species, Species Groups, the Limits of the Genus, and Genus Groups Beyond--A Look at What is Wrong with the Skipper Classification of Evans (Hesperiidae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 44, (1) 16–17.
  • Burns, John M. 1989. "Phylogeny and Zoogreography of the Bigger and Better Genus Atalopedes (Hesperiidae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 43, (1) 11–32.
  • Burns, John M. 1987. "Carnival." Perspectives in biology and medicine, 30 607.
  • Burns, John M. 1987. "The Big Shift: Nabokovi from Atalopedes to Hesperia (Hesperiidae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 41, (4) 173–186.
  • Burns, John M. 1983. "Biomodels." Bulletin of the Entomological Society of America, 29, (2) 37.
  • Burns, John M. 1983. "Queen of the Carolinas (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Danainae: Danaus gilippus)." Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 85, (2) 388–396.
  • Burns, John M. 1983. "Superspecies Atrytonopsis ovinia (A. ovinia plus A. edwardsi) and the Nonadaptive Nature of Interspecific Genitalic Differences (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae)." Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 85, (2) 335–358.
  • Burns, John M. 1982. "Lychnuchoides frappenda from Central Mexico Joins Lunus and Zweifeli in a Lunus Group of Atrytonopsis (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae)." Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 84, (3) 547–567.
  • Burns, John M. 1981. "The Winter's Springtail." Perspectives in biology and medicine, 25, (1) 92.
  • Burns, John M. 1980. "Bone Man." MCZ Newsletter, 9, (2) 4–5.
  • Burns, John M. 1980. "Beginnings and Ends." Perspectives in biology and medicine, 24, (1) 60.
  • Burns, John M. 1979. "Oedipus Curtailed." Perspectives in biology and medicine, 22, (2) 169.
  • Burns, John M. 1979. "Finite Wisdom." Perspectives in biology and medicine, 22, (2) 249.
  • Burns, John M. 1974. "Human Evolution in a Nutshell." MCZ Newsletter, 3, (2) 7.
  • Burns, John M. 1974. "The Polytypic Genus Celotes (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Pyrginae) from the Southwestern United States and Mexico." Psyche, 81, (1) 51–69.
  • Webster, T. P. and Burns, John M. 1973. "Dewlap Color Variation and Electrophoretically Detected Sibling Species in a Haitian Lizard, Anolis brevirostris." Evolution, 27, (3) 368–377.
  • Burns, John M. and Johnson, F. M. 1971. "Esterase Polymorphism in the Butterfly Hemiargus isola: Stability in a Variable Environment." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 68, (1) 34–37.
  • Powell, J. A. and Burns, John M. 1971. "Colonization of the Northeastern United States by Two Paleartic Moths (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)." Psyche, 78, (1-2) 38–48.
  • Burns, John M. 1970. "Highly Polymorphic Butterfly Esterases." Isozyme Bulletin, 3 49–50.
  • Burns, John M. 1970. "Secondary Symmetry of Asymmetric Genitalia in Males of Erynnis funeralis and E. propertius (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae)." Psyche, 77, (4) 430–435.
  • Burns, John M. 1970. "Duration of Copulation in Poanes hobomok (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) and some Broader Speculations." Psyche, 77, (1) 127–130.
  • Burns, John M. 1969. "Cryptic Sleeping Posture of a Skipper Butterfly, Erynnis brizo." Psyche, 76, (4) 382–386.
  • Burns, John M. and Kendall, R. O. 1969. "Ecologic and Spatial Distribution of Pyrgus oileus and Pyrgus philetas (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) at their Northern Distributional Limits." Psyche, 76, (1) 41–53.
  • Burns, John M. 1968. "Mating Frequency in Natural Populations of Skippers and Butterflies as Determined by Spermatophore Counts." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 61, (3) 852–859.
  • Burns, John M. 1968. "A Simple Model Illustrating Problems of Phylogeny and Classification." Systematic Zoology, 17, (2) 170–173.
  • Burns, John M. 1967. "Selective Forces in Papilio glaucus." Science, 156-num-3774) 534.
  • Burns, John M. and Johnson, F. M. 1967. "Esterase Polymorphism in Natural Populations of a Sulfur Butterfly, Colias eurytheme." Science, 156-num-3771) 93–96.
  • Burns, John M. 1966. "Expanding Distribution and Evolutionary Potential of Thymelicus lineola (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae), an Introduced Skipper, with Special Reference to its Appearance in British Columbia." Canadian Entomologist, 98 859–866.
  • Burns, John M. 1966. "Preferential Mating Versus Mimicry: Disruptive Selection and Sex-limited Dimorphism in Papilio glaucus." Science, 153-num-3735) 551–553.
  • Johnson, F. M. and Burns, John M. 1966. "Electrophoretic Variation in Esterases of Colias eurytheme (Pieridae)." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 20, (4) 207–211.
  • Apter, R. L. and Burns, John M. 1965. "First Connecticut Records of Thymelicus lineola, an Introduced Hesperiid." Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, 19, (4) 195–196.
  • Burns, John M. 1964. "Evolution in Skipper Butterflies of the Genus Erynnis." University of California Publications in Entomology, 37 1–216.
  • Burns, John M. 1960. "A New Species of Oak-Eating Erynnis (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) Restricted to the Southern Cordillera of the United States." Wasmann Journal of Biology, 18, (1) 147–160.
  • Burns, John M. 1956. "Problems in Zoological Polymorphism." The Scientific Monthly, 82, (2) 75–84.

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Book Chapter
  • Burns, John M. 1996. "Gutless wonder." In Integrated Principles of Zoology. Hickman, C. P., Jr., Roberts, L. S., and Larson, A., editors. 291.
  • Burns, John M. 1987. "Lines to an Angler Fish." In Frogfishes of the World: Systematics, Zoogeography, and Behavioral Ecology. Pietsch, T. W. and Grobecker, D. B., editors. vii. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press.
  • Burns, John M. 1981. "The Baculum." In Sexuality: The Human Experience. Gotwald, W. H., Jr. and Golden, G. H., editors. 54. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc.
  • Burns, John M. 1980. "Conform." In Selected Readings in Sociobiology. Hunt, J. H., editor. vi. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co.
  • Burns, John M. 1975. "Isozymes in Evolutionary Systematics." In Isozymes, IV: Genetics and Evolution. 49–62.
Book Review
  • Burns, John M. 1990. [Book review] "Ninety-nine Gnats, Nits, and Nibblers, by M. R. Berenbaum." Quartarterly Review of Biology, 65, 490.
  • Burns, John M. 1966. [Book review] "Our Butterflies and Moths, by W. H. Howe." The Quarterly Review of Biology, 41, 51.
  • Burns, John M. 1962. [Book review] "How to Know the Butterflies, by P. R. and A. H. Ehrlich." Entomological News, 73, (6), 165–167.
Book
Magazine Article
  • Burns, John M. 1975. "Butterflies: Their World, Their Life Cycle, Their Behavior, by T. C. Emmel." Smithsonian, 6, (9), 130–132.