The genus was erected by Michael Jan Adams and George Igor Bernard in 1981.

[2] The genus was described by Adams and Bernard in 1981 based on wing venation, male genitalia, wing color pattern and ecological characteristics of the type species Pedaliodes empetrus originally described by German entomologist Theodor Otto Thieme in 1905.

[3] These authors considered the genus to be monobasic, but recognized two subspecies, and suggested a close relationship with two other endemic genera in isolated mountain ranges.

[4][5] Another species was described 20 years later, Redonda bordoni, from the southwest corner of the Cordillera de Mérida in Táchira.

[2] Other taxa were already recognized, but there were evident gaps in distribution and ecological data and no formal description was attempted until 2015.