Similar species
Clusiodes nitidus
and Clusiodes orbitalis are unlike other dark Clusiodes in that the entire costal margin of the wing is darkly-clouded, not just the anterodistal margin. The two species can be separated as follows: in C. nitidus, the pigment along the margin of the costa is very thin and the penultimate section of A1+CuA2 is surrounded by a cloud; in C. orbitalis, no cloud is present around A1+CuA2 and the marginal cloud nearly fills the first radial cell.

Distribution
Clusiodes nitidus
is restricted to the southwestern United States at high altitudes (2134-2743m) along the Rocky and Sierra Madre Occidental Mountains, often in association with pine forests (Caloren & Marshall, 1998). Its closest Nearctic relative, C. orbitalis, is found nearby to the north, continuing along the mountains from Utah to Alaska.