Noctuoidea
Noctuoidea is the superfamily of noctuid (Latin "night owl") or "owlet" moths, and has more than 70,000 described species, the largest number of for any Lepidopteran superfamily. Its classification has not yet reached a satisfactory or stable state. Since the end of the 20th century, increasing availability of molecular phylogenetic data for this hugely successful radiation has led to several competing proposals for a taxonomic arrangement that correctly represents the relationships between the major lineages. Briefly, the disputes center on the fact that in old treatments (which were just as unable to reach a general consensus) the distinctness of some groups, such as the Arctiidae or Lymantriidae, was overrated due to their characteristic appearance, while some less-studied lineages conventionally held to be Noctuidae are in fact quite distinct. This requires a rearrangement at least of the latter family (by simply including anything disputed within it). This is quite unwieldy ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Noctuidae
The Noctuidae, commonly known as owlet moths, cutworms or armyworms, are a family of moths. They are considered the most controversial family in the superfamily Noctuoidea because many of the clades are constantly changing, along with the other families of the Noctuoidea. It was considered the largest family in Lepidoptera for a long time, but after regrouping Lymantriinae, Catocalinae and Calpinae within the family Erebidae, the latter holds this title now. Currently, Noctuidae is the second largest family in Noctuoidea, with about 1,089 genera and 11,772 species. This classification is still contingent, as more changes continue to appear between Noctuidae and Erebidae. Description Adult: Most noctuid adults have drab wings, but some subfamilies, such as Acronictinae and Agaristinae, are very colorful, especially those from tropical regions (e.g. '' Baorisa hieroglyphica''). They are characterized by a structure in the metathorax called the nodular sclerite or epaulette, whic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Micronoctuidae
The Micronoctuini are a tribe of moths in the family Erebidae that includes about 400 described species. Typical species in the tribe have bifine hindwing venation (unlike most of the related subfamily Hypenodinae) and are smaller than those in other noctuoid moths. '' Micronoctua karsholti'' is the smallest of all species in the superfamily Noctuoidea. Taxonomic history Before the initial description of the tribe as the family Micronoctuidae in 2005, about 20 species were described in the families Arctiidae (now Arctiinae), Noctuidae, Nolidae (now Nolinae) and Pyralidae. The first species now referable to the tribe were named by Walker in 1863. Species of this tribe are rare in collections, possibly because most species are drably coloured (often a unicolorous brown, grey, or black) and are extremely small. Furthermore, lepidopterists specialising in macrolepidoptera ignore these species, thinking they belong to the microlepidoptera instead, while microlepidopterists collect th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Erebidae
The Erebidae are a family of moths in the superfamily Noctuoidea. The family is among the largest families of moths by species count and contains a wide variety of well-known macromoth groups. The family includes the underwings ('' Catocala''); litter moths (Herminiinae); tiger, lichen, and wasp moths (Arctiinae); tussock moths (Lymantriinae), including the arctic woolly bear moth (''Gynaephora groenlandica''); piercing moths ( Calpinae and others); micronoctuoid moths (Micronoctuini); snout moths (Hypeninae); and zales, though many of these common names can also refer to moths outside the Erebidae (for example, crambid snout moths). Some of the erebid moths are called owlets. The sizes of the adults range from among the largest of all moths (> wingspan in the black witch) to the smallest of the macromoths ( wingspan in some of the Micronoctuini). The coloration of the adults spans the full range of dull, drab, and camouflaged (e.g., ''Zale lunifera'' and litter moths) to vi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Arctiidae
The Arctiinae (formerly called the family Arctiidae) are a large and diverse subfamily of moths with around 11,000 species found all over the world, including 6,000 neotropical species.Scoble, MJ. (1995). ''The Lepidoptera: Form, Function and Diversity''. Second ed. Oxford University Press. This subfamily includes the groups commonly known as tiger moths (or tigers), which usually have bright colours, footmen, which are usually much drabber, lichen moths, and wasp moths. Many species have "hairy" caterpillars that are popularly known as woolly bears or woolly worms. The scientific name Arctiinae refers to this hairiness (Gk. αρκτος = a bear). Some species within the Arctiinae have the word "tussock"' in their common names because they have been misidentified as members of the Lymantriinae subfamily based on the characteristics of the larvae. Taxonomy The subfamily was previously classified as the family Arctiidae of the superfamily Noctuoidea and is a monophyletic group. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Oenosandridae
Oenosandridae is a family of Australian noctuoid moths. Genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ... include: *'' Diceratucha'' *'' Discophlebia'' *'' Nycteropa'' *'' Oenosandra'' References * Fullard, J.H. 2006: Evolution of hearing in moths: the ears of ''Oenosandra boisduvalii'' (Noctuoidea: Oenosandridae). ''Australian journal of zoology'', 54: 51–56* Kuznetzov, V.I.; Naumann, C.M.; Speidel, W.; Stekolnikov, A.A. 2004: The skeleton and musculature of male and female terminalia in ''Oenosandra boisduvalii'' Newman, 1856 and the phylogenetic position of the family Oenosandridae (Insecta: Lepidoptera). ''SHILAP Revista de Lepidopterologia'', 32: 297-313. * Miller, J.S. 1991: Cladistics and classification of the Notodontidae (Lepidoptera, Noctuoidea) based on larv ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lymantriidae
The Lymantriinae (formerly called the Lymantriidae) are a subfamily of moths of the family Erebidae. The taxon was erected by George Hampson in 1893. Many of its component species are referred to as "tussock moths" of one sort or another. The caterpillar, or larval, stage of these species often has a distinctive appearance of alternating bristles and haired projections. Many tussock moth caterpillars have urticating hairs (often hidden among longer, softer hairs), which can cause painful reactions if they come into contact with skin. The subfamily Lymantriinae includes about 350 known genera and over 2,500 known species found in every continent except Antarctica. They are particularly concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa, India, Southeast Asia, and South America. One estimate lists 258 species in Madagascar alone.Schaefer, Paul (1989). "Diversity in form, function, behavior, and ecology", ''In:'' USDA Forest Service (ed.): ''Proceedings, Lymantriidae: A Comparison of Features of New ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Notodontidae
Notodontidae is a family of moths with approximately 3,800 known species. The family was described by James Francis Stephens in 1829. Moths of this family are found in all parts of the world, but they are most concentrated in tropical areas, especially in the New World (Miller, 1992). Species of this family tend to be heavy-bodied and long-winged, the wings held folded across the back of the body at rest. They rarely display any bright colours, usually being mainly grey or brown, with the exception of the subfamily Dioptinae (Grimaldi and Engel, 2005). These features mean they rather resemble Noctuidae although the families are not closely related. The adults do not feed. Many species have a tuft of hair on the trailing edge of the forewing which protrudes upwards at rest. This gives them their scientific name "back tooth" and the common name of prominents. The common names of some other species reflect their hairiness, such as puss moth and the group commonly known as kittens (' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic rank, superfamilies, 10 percent of the total described species of living organisms. It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world. The Lepidoptera show many variations of the basic body structure that have evolved to gain advantages in lifestyle and distribution. Recent estimates suggest the order may have more species than earlier thought, and is among the four most wikt:speciose, speciose orders, along with the Hymenoptera, fly, Diptera, and beetle, Coleoptera. Lepidopteran species are characterized by more than three derived features. The most apparent is the presence of scale (anatomy), scales that cover the torso, bodies, wings, and a proboscis. The scales are modified, flattened "hairs", and give ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pygaerinae
Pygaerinae is a subfamily of the moth family Notodontidae, the silver prominents and relatives. The genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ... list is preliminary, as not all Notodontidae have been assigned to subfamilies yet. Genera * '' Caschara'' * '' Clostera'' * '' Coscodaca'' * '' Ginshachia'' ** '' Ginshachia bronacha'' ** '' Ginshachia gemmifera'' * '' Gonoclostera'' * '' Gluphisia'' * '' Metaschalis'' * '' Micromelalopha'' * '' Pterotes'' * '' Pygaera'' * '' Rhegmatophila'' * '' Rosama'' * '' Spatalia'' ** '' Spatalia argentina'' Notodontidae {{Notodontidae-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nolidae
Nolidae is a family of moths with about 1,700 described species worldwide. They are mostly small with dull coloration, the main distinguishing feature being a silk cocoon with a vertical exit slit. The group is sometimes known as tuft moths, after the tufts of raised scales on the forewings of two subfamilies, Nolinae and Collomeninae. The larvae also tend to have muted colors and tufts of short hairs. Formerly, this group was included in the Noctuidae. Subfamilies * Chloephorinae * Collomeninae * Eligminae * Nolinae * Risobinae Monotypic subfamilies * Afridinae – ''Afrida'' * Bleninae – ''Blenina'' * Diphtherinae – '' Diphthera'' (monotypic genus) * Eariadinae – ''Earias'' * Westermanniinae – '' Westermannia'' Genera ''incertae sedis'' The following genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Catocalinae
The Catocalinae are a subfamily of noctuoid moths, placed in family Noctuidae. In the alternative arrangement, where the Noctuidae are reduced to the core group around the Noctuinae, the present lineage is abolished, the upranked Catocalini being merged with the Erebini and becoming a subfamily of the reestablished family Erebidae.FE (2011), and see references in Sacvela (2011) Many of the species are large () compared to other noctuids in temperate zones, and have brightly colored backwings. The closely related Ophiderinae and Calpinae are sometimes merged into this group. Genera The Catocalinae genera are usually assigned to the tribes Tytini, Armadini and Erebini, which have a fairly small number of genera, and the much larger Catocalini. The Poaphilini are another proposed tribe around the genus '' Argyrostrotis'' (= ''Poaphila''), but is here considered to be paraphyletic. In addition, a high proportion of genera is not at present assigned to a specific tribe as thei ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Platychasmatinae
Platychasmatinae is a small East Asian subfamily of the moth family Notodontidae. Only two genera are placed here at present: * ''Cyphanta'' Walker, 1865 * '' Platychasma'' Butler, 1881 Though not all Notodontidae have been assigned to subfamilies yet, it is unlikely that many of these genera ''incertae sedis'' will turn out to be Platychasmatinae, as thus family is a rather ancient and distinct group. In fact, a newly discovered species of ''Platychasma'' is somewhat intermediate between the two genera, suggesting that this subfamily might actually be monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec .... References * Notodontidae {{Notodontidae-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |