The Batrachedridae are a small
family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
of tiny
moth
Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...
s. These are small, slender moths which rest with their wings wrapped tightly around their bodies.
Taxonomy
The taxonomy of this and related groups is often disputed.
This group was first proposed as a taxonomic rank in 1876 by
Hermann von Heinemann and
Maximilian Ferdinand Wocke
Maximilian Ferdinand Wocke (27 November 1820, Breslau – 7 November 1906) was a German entomologist, specialising in Lepidoptera.
He was an apothecary and physician.
Selected works
* with Otto Staudinger
Otto Staudinger (2 May 1830 – ...
under the name Batrachedrae.
Lord Walsingham used the name Batrachedridae in 1890.
Ron Hodges
Ronald Wray Hodges (born June 22, 1949) is a former catcher in Major League Baseball, who spent his entire 12-year career with the New York Mets.
Hodges was originally draft (sports), drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the sixth round of the 19 ...
decided to separate a number of new species he was describing in 1966 from ''
Batrachedra
''Batrachedra'' is the largest genus in the moth family Batrachedridae, with representatives all over the world. The early stages of most species are unknown. The genus name is derived from the Greek words ''batrachos'', 'frog', and ''edra'', 'se ...
'' in his new genus ''
Chedra
''Chedra'' is a genus of tiny moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae.
Taxonomy
Ron Hodges created the genus in 1966 to accommodate three new species: two from North America and one from Chile. These he found very similar to the genus ' ...
'', on the basis of the adult males possessing a "single, strong,
apical
Apical means "pertaining to an apex". It may refer to:
*Apical ancestor, refers to the last common ancestor of an entire group, such as a species (biology) or a clan (anthropology)
*Apical (anatomy), an anatomical term of location for features loc ...
spine on the
ampulla
An ampulla (; ) was, in Ancient Rome, a small round vessel, usually made of glass and with two handles, used for sacred purposes. The word is used of these in archaeology, and of later flasks, often handle-less and much flatter, for holy water or ...
" (also known as the
harpe
The ''harpē'' () was a type of sword or sickle; a sword with a sickle protrusion along one edge near the tip of the blade. The harpe is mentioned in Greek and Roman sources, and almost always in mythological contexts.
Harpe in mythology
T ...
). ''
Chedra
''Chedra'' is a genus of tiny moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae.
Taxonomy
Ron Hodges created the genus in 1966 to accommodate three new species: two from North America and one from Chile. These he found very similar to the genus ' ...
'' then accommodated three species: two from North America and one from
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
. Hodges furthermore described two more related genera in this paper: ''
Duospina
''Duospina'' is a genus of moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae. It was formerly included in the Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belonging to the huge superfamily Gelechioidea. Collectively know ...
'' and ''
Ifeda
''Ifeda'' is a genus of moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae
The Batrachedridae are a small family of tiny moths. These are small, slender moths which rest with their wings wrapped tightly around their bodies.
Taxonomy
The taxonomy o ...
''. These genera he all placed in the family
Gelechioidea
__NOTOC__
Gelechioidea (from the type genus ''Gelechia
''Gelechia'' is a genus of moths in the family Gelechiidae. The type species is '' Gelechia rhombella''.
Species
*Subgenus ''Gelechia''
**'' Gelechia asinella'' (Hubner, 1796)
**'' Gel ...
.
In his 1978 treatment of the microlepidoptera
Microlepidoptera (micromoths) is an artificial (i.e., unranked and not monophyletic) grouping of moth families, commonly known as the 'smaller moths' (micro, Lepidoptera). These generally have wingspans of under 20 mm, and are thus harder to ...
of Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
, Elwood Zimmerman classified this group as a new subfamily
In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...
of the family Gelechiidae
The Gelechiidae are a family of moths commonly referred to as twirler moths or gelechiid moths. They are the namesake family of the huge and little-studied superfamily Gelechioidea, and the family's taxonomy has been subject to considerable d ...
, which he coined the Momphinae
The Momphidae, or mompha moths, is a family of moths with some 115 described species. It was described by Gottlieb August Wilhelm Herrich-Schäffer in 1857. These moths tend to be rather small with a wingspan of up to 21 mm. The wings are he ...
. Zimmerman split five local species from the genus ''Batrachedra'' to a new genus ''Batrachedrodes
''Batrachedrodes'' is a genus of moths of the Momphidae family. All species of this genus are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands.
All six species were collected by Robert Cyril Layton Perkins and then described by Thomas de Grey, 6th Baron Walsin ...
'' on the basis of morphology
Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to:
Disciplines
* Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts
* Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies ...
and the particular habit of feeding among sporangia
A sporangium (; from Late Latin, ) is an enclosure in which spores are formed. It can be composed of a single cell or can be multicellular. Virtually all plants, fungi, and many other lineages form sporangia at some point in their life cyc ...
on the underside of fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
fronds.[
That same year, however, Hodges classified ''Batrachedra'', ''Chedra'', ''Duospina'' and ''Ifeda'' in the family Batrachedridae in ''The moths of America north of Mexico''.] Hodges changed the classification in his 1983 ''Check List of the Lepidoptera of America North of Mexico'' and included the group as the subfamily Batrachedrinae of the family Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belonging to the huge superfamily Gelechioidea. Collectively known as case-bearers, casebearing moths or case moths, this family is represented on all continents, but the majority are foun ...
.
Meanwhile, in Italy, the microlepidopterist Giorgio Baldizzone published an account of the Coleophoridae of Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
in 1996, in which he removed the genus ''Corythangela
''Corythangela'' is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Batrachedridae. It was transferred to this family by Baldizonne in 1996 (It is traditionally grouped in the Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belo ...
'' from that family to the Batrachedridae ''sensu'' Hodges 1978, apparently not having read or not following Hodges 1983 yet, upon examining the genitalia
A sex organ (or reproductive organ) is any part of an animal or plant that is involved in sexual reproduction. The reproductive organs together constitute the reproductive system. In animals, the testis in the male, and the ovary in the female, a ...
of the two species then known from the territory and finding them more similar to those of other Batrachedridae.[
In 1999 Hodges reclassified it again as the family Batrachedridae. He also reclassified the family ]Epimarptidae
Epimarptidae was a former, or is a possible, monotypic family of moths in the moth superfamily Gelechioidea. It can now be seen as either a synonym of family Batrachedridae, or a monotypic subfamily of that family.
Taxonomy and systematics
Epi ...
as the subfamily
In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...
Epimarptinae of this family, based on a number of shared synapomorphies. The Batrachedrinae '' sensu stricto'' he then reclassified as the subfamily Batrachedrinae. At the time Hodges considered the subfamily Batrachedrinae to include more than 100 species in five genera worldwide.
In Japan Yutaka Arita had been investigating a mysterious moth for a number of decades, but had been unable to identify it. He eventually got in touch with Kazuhiro Sugisima, and together with help of others, they were able to identify it and describe it as a new species of '' Idioglossa'' in 2000. Upon closer examination of the genitals of it and other species Sugisima transferred the genus, according to the key in Hodges' 1999 reclassification of the group, in the subfamily Batrachedrinae of the family Batrachedridae.
Sjaak J. C. Koster & Sergey Yu. Sinev in the 2003 ''Microlepidoptera of Europe'' recognise Hodges' subfamily Batrachedrinae at the rank of family again, but it is unclear where they place ''Epimarptis'' (which doesn't occur in Europe, as far as known).
In 2004 Lauri Kaila
Lauri Kaila is a Finnish entomologist and researcher of biodiversity, specializing in Lepidoptera, at the Finnish Museum of Natural History of the University of Helsinki. As of 2018, Kaila authored 171 species within the family of Elachistidae ...
attempted to use cladistics
Cladistics (; ) is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups (" clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is typically shared derived char ...
to approximate the phylogeny
A phylogenetic tree (also phylogeny or evolutionary tree Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, MA.) is a branching diagram or a tree showing the evolutionary relationships among various biological spe ...
of the superfamily Gelechioidea, using 193 morphological traits. In this work the family Batrachedridae appeared paraphyletic
In taxonomy (general), taxonomy, a group is paraphyletic if it consists of the group's most recent common ancestor, last common ancestor and most of its descendants, excluding a few Monophyly, monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be pa ...
, because the family Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belonging to the huge superfamily Gelechioidea. Collectively known as case-bearers, casebearing moths or case moths, this family is represented on all continents, but the majority are foun ...
''sensu stricto'' was nested within the Batrachedridae. Kaila used an undescribed species from Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
which mined in the plant ''Lomandra longifolia
''Lomandra longifolia'', commonly known as spiny-head mat-rush, spiky-headed mat-rush or basket grass, is a perennial, rhizomatous herb found throughout eastern Australia. The leaves are 40 cm to 80 cm long, and generally have a leaf of ...
'', provisionally called "''Batrachedra eustola''", in his analysis. This taxon specifically helped to cause the Batrachedridae to be paraphyletic. Another problem was encountered with the genus '' Epimarptis''. At the time, the few old specimens which existed in London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
had never been properly examined, and no one had knowingly collected any species of this genus since, and as such most of the traits used by Kaila were unknown. His paper proposed classifying the traditional family Coleophoridae, along with the subfamilies Batrachedrinae, Stathmopodinae and Coelopoetinae, in a newly circumscribed
In geometry, the circumscribed circle or circumcircle of a polygon is a circle that passes through all the vertices of the polygon. The center of this circle is called the circumcenter and its radius is called the circumradius.
Not every polyg ...
family Coleophoridae ''sensu lato
''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular c ...
''. Inclusion of the genus ''Epimarptis'' in his analysis showed it belonged within his Coleophoridae ''sensu lato'', but that including it caused a collapse of resolution in the basal clades of this provisional family. Kaila states that he is not formally revising Hodges' classification in this paper, merely suggesting a new classification.
Later in 2004, Sugisima stated that, after examining the specimens of the new Japanese species of ''Epimarptis'' he had just recognised, and new photographs of the specimens in London, and filling out some of the numerous until then unknown morphological characteristics of this obscure genus, it was not possible for him to agree with Kaila's analysis wholeheartedly, because in some characteristics ''Epimarptis'' fell outside even Coleophoridae ''sensu lato''. Sugisima also mentions he finds the synapomorphies used by Hodges to define this latter family and its subfamilies in 1999 invalid in light of the further morphological observations made by him and Kaila, finding only one synapomorphy verifiable.[
In 2006 Batrachedridae was expanded with another genus, the ]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 ...
''Houdinia'' with the single species '' Houdinia flexilissima'' restricted to New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
. In the description of this species Hoare ''et al''. state that the new species appears morphologically closest to the new '' Epimarptis hiranoi'' of Japan, and because Kaila does not formally revise the taxonomy in his 2004 paper, they are classifying the species according to the taxonomy published by Hodges in 1999.
In Zhi-Qiang Zhang's 2011 attempt to number all the known animal species of earth, van Nieukerken ''et al''., the authors of the section on 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 r ...
, were aware of Hodges' 1999 work but chose to repudiate it, and re-recognised Epimarptidae
Epimarptidae was a former, or is a possible, monotypic family of moths in the moth superfamily Gelechioidea. It can now be seen as either a synonym of family Batrachedridae, or a monotypic subfamily of that family.
Taxonomy and systematics
Epi ...
as a family again. Four species in the genus ''Epimarptis'' were counted as belonging to this family. In their taxonomic interpretation, the family Batrachedridae was circumscribed by Heinemann & Wocke in 1876, and comprised 99 species in 10 genera.
Three years later, in 2014, a cladistic
Cladistics (; ) is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups ("clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is typically shared derived char ...
analysis by Heikkilä ''et al''. repudiated this interpretation and synonymised Epimarptidae with Batrachedridae again. They furthermore removed the genera '' Homaledra'' and '' Houdinia'' from the family, and moved both to the Pterolonchidae
Pterolonchidae is a small family of very small moths in the superfamily Gelechioidea.Wikispecies (2008-NOV-06) There are species native to every continent except Australia and Antarctica.
Taxonomy and systematics
As of 2014 the family may be co ...
.
Subfamilies
In 1999 Hodges considered the family to have two subfamilies:
*Epimarptinae (Meyrick
Meyrick is a surname and given name. Meyricke is a variant form.
Surname
* Edmund Meyrick (1636–1713), Welsh cleric
* Edward Meyrick (1854–1938), English schoolmaster and amateur entomologist
* Edward Meyrick Goulburn (1818–1897), English ...
, 1914) Hodges, 1999 - 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 ...
, including only '' Epimarptis'' in 1999.[
*Batrachedrinae (]Heinemann Heinemann may refer to:
* Heinemann (surname)
* Heinemann (publisher), a publishing company
* Heinemann Park, a.k.a. Pelican Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
See also
* Heineman
* Jamie Hyneman
James Franklin Hyneman (born Se ...
& Wocke, 1876) Hodges, 1999 - Hodges included five genera in the subfamily: ''Batrachedra
''Batrachedra'' is the largest genus in the moth family Batrachedridae, with representatives all over the world. The early stages of most species are unknown. The genus name is derived from the Greek words ''batrachos'', 'frog', and ''edra'', 'se ...
'', ''Chedra
''Chedra'' is a genus of tiny moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae.
Taxonomy
Ron Hodges created the genus in 1966 to accommodate three new species: two from North America and one from Chile. These he found very similar to the genus ' ...
'', ''Duospina
''Duospina'' is a genus of moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae. It was formerly included in the Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belonging to the huge superfamily Gelechioidea. Collectively know ...
'', '' Homaledra'' and ''Ifeda
''Ifeda'' is a genus of moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae
The Batrachedridae are a small family of tiny moths. These are small, slender moths which rest with their wings wrapped tightly around their bodies.
Taxonomy
The taxonomy o ...
''.[ '' Idioglossa'' was moved to this group in 2000.][ ''Homaledra'' was moved out of the family in 2014.]
*''Corythangela
''Corythangela'' is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Batrachedridae. It was transferred to this family by Baldizonne in 1996 (It is traditionally grouped in the Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belo ...
'' and '' Houdinia'' were never classified according to subfamily.[ ''Houdinia'' was moved out of the family in 2014.]
Genera
These genera have at one point been assigned to the family:
*''Batrachedra
''Batrachedra'' is the largest genus in the moth family Batrachedridae, with representatives all over the world. The early stages of most species are unknown. The genus name is derived from the Greek words ''batrachos'', 'frog', and ''edra'', 'se ...
'' Herrich-Schäffer, 1853
*''Batrachedrodes
''Batrachedrodes'' is a genus of moths of the Momphidae family. All species of this genus are endemic to the Hawaiian Islands.
All six species were collected by Robert Cyril Layton Perkins and then described by Thomas de Grey, 6th Baron Walsin ...
'' Zimmerman, 1978
*''Chedra
''Chedra'' is a genus of tiny moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae.
Taxonomy
Ron Hodges created the genus in 1966 to accommodate three new species: two from North America and one from Chile. These he found very similar to the genus ' ...
'' Hodges, 1966
*''Corythangela
''Corythangela'' is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Batrachedridae. It was transferred to this family by Baldizonne in 1996 (It is traditionally grouped in the Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belo ...
'' Meyrick
Meyrick is a surname and given name. Meyricke is a variant form.
Surname
* Edmund Meyrick (1636–1713), Welsh cleric
* Edward Meyrick (1854–1938), English schoolmaster and amateur entomologist
* Edward Meyrick Goulburn (1818–1897), English ...
, 1897
*''Duospina
''Duospina'' is a genus of moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae. It was formerly included in the Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belonging to the huge superfamily Gelechioidea. Collectively know ...
'' Hodges, 1966
*''Enscepastra
''Enscepastra'' is a genus of moths, belonging to the family Coleophoridae
__NOTOC__
The Coleophoridae are a family of small moths, belonging to the huge superfamily Gelechioidea. Collectively known as case-bearers, casebearing moths or case ...
'' Meyrick, 1920
*'' Epimarptis'' Meyrick, 1914
*'' Homaledra'' Busck, 1900
*'' Houdinia'' Hoare, Dugdale & Watts
Watts is plural for ''watt'', the unit of power.
Watts may also refer to:
People
*Watts (surname), list of people with the surname Watts Fictional characters
*Watts, main character in the film '' Some Kind of Wonderful''
*Watts family, six chara ...
, 2006
*'' Idioglossa'' Walsingham, 1881
*''Ifeda
''Ifeda'' is a genus of moths, belonging to the family Batrachedridae
The Batrachedridae are a small family of tiny moths. These are small, slender moths which rest with their wings wrapped tightly around their bodies.
Taxonomy
The taxonomy o ...
'' Hodges, 1966
Distribution and diversity
A total of over a hundred species of ''Batrachedra'' are found on every continent except Antarctica, including a number of Pacific islands, although there are only three species that occur in Europe. The genus ''Batrachedrodes'', with six species, is endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the Hawaiian Islands.[ Six ''Chedra'' species have been found, scattered over the USA, Chile,][ Hawaii][ and the ]Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
.[ & , 1993: ''Chedra fimbristyli'' n. sp. ein minierender Kleinschmetterling an ''Fimbrystylis'' ssp (Cyperaceae) auf Leyte, Philippinen (Lepidoptera: Batrachedridae). ''Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift'' N.F. 40(1): 181-186. Abstract: ] Three species of ''Epimarptis'' have been found scattered across the Indian Subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...
, another was found in Japan.[ Eight ''Idioglossa'' species been found, one to two species on each continent, except five species in Asia, and none in Europe, South America and Antarctica.]
North America contains at least six genera.[
Australia contains three genera, two species of ''Corythangela'' and twenty-nine of ''Batrachedra'', as well as a number of undescribed species] and one species of ''Idioglossa''.
The Hawaiian Islands contain two genera with eight species, six of ''Batrachedrodes'', and two of ''Chedra''.[
Europe only has three species of ''Batrachedra''.]
References
External links
Microleps
U.S.A. (Neartic)
{{Taxonbar, from=Q133304
Gelechioidea
Moth families
Taxa named by Hermann von Heinemann
Taxa named by Maximilian Ferdinand Wocke