''Agrionympha'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of small primitive metallic

moths Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (suborder Rhopalocera) a ...

in the family

Micropterigidae Micropterigoidea is the superfamily of "mandibulate archaic moths", all placed in the single family Micropterigidae, containing currently about twenty living genera. They are considered the most primitive extant lineage of lepidoptera (Kristense ...

,biolib.cz
/ref> and the only described micropterigid genus in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. The genus is associated with Afrotemperate Forest, and is endemic to South Africa. The larvae fed on

liverworts Liverworts are a group of non-vascular plant, non-vascular embryophyte, land plants forming the division Marchantiophyta (). They may also be referred to as hepatics. Like mosses and hornworts, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in wh ...

, and the adult moths appear to require sheltered, humid sites (they are often found amongst

ferns The ferns (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta) are a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. They differ from mosses by being vascular, i.e., having specialized tissue ...

Species

The following species are recognised:Gibbs, G.W. and Kristensen, N.P., 2011. Agrionympha, the long-known South African jaw moths: a revision with descriptions of new species (Lepidoptera, Micropterigidae). Zootaxa, 2764(1), pp.1-21. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.2764.1.1 *'' Agrionympha capensis'' Whalley, 1978 *'' Agrionympha fuscoapicella'' Gibbs, 2011 *'' Agrionympha jansella'' Gibbs, 2011 *'' Agrionympha karoo'' Gibbs, 2011 *'' Agrionympha kroonella'' Gibbs, 2011 *'' Agrionympha pseliacma'' Meyrick, 1921 *'' Agrionympha pseudovari'' Gibbs, 2011 *'' Agrionympha sagittella'' Gibbs, 2011 *'' Agrionympha vari'' Whalley, 1978

References

Micropterigidae Moth genera Taxa named by Edward Meyrick {{Micropterigidae-stub