''Phymatopus'' (originally: ''Noctua'' Linnaeus, 1758) is a

genus 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 nom ...

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 of the family

Hepialidae The Hepialidae are a family of insects in the lepidopteran order. Moths of this family are often referred to as swift moths or ghost moths. Taxonomy and systematics The Hepialidae constitute by far the most diverse group of the infraorder Exop ...

(commonly referred to as swift moths or ghost moths), which consists of around 500 species and 30 genera. The genus was erected by

Hans Daniel Johan Wallengren Hans Daniel Johan Wallengren (8 June 1823 – 25 October 1894) was a Swedish clergyman and entomologist. Biography He was born in Lund, Sweden. Wallengren became a student at Lund University from 1842, was ordained a priest in 1847 and was app ...

in 1869. They can be found across Eurasia and North America. Species can be distinguished by the different morphology of male

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 ...

and different forewing patterns, which vary in stripe colour and size and arrangement of spots. The stripes themselves consist of spots separated by dark veins which are fringed by thin black lines from both inner and outer sides.

Species

*''

Phymatopus hecta The gold swift (''Phymatopus hecta'') is a moth belonging to the family Hepialidae. Until recently it was placed in the genus ''Hepialus''. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae''. Moth ...

'' (gold swift) - Europe :*Food plant: ''

Pteridium Bracken (''Pteridium'') is a genus of large, coarse ferns in the family Dennstaedtiaceae. Ferns (Pteridophyta) are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells (egg ...

'', but many others are named in the European literature *'' Phymatopus japonicus'' -

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...

:*Food plant: ''

'' *'' Phymatopus hectica'' - eastern

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

''Phymatopus'' auctt. nec Wallengren, 1869 *'' Phymatopus behrensii'' - United States :*Recorded food plants: '' Helenium'', '' Lupinus'', ''

Malus ''Malus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 30–55 species of small deciduous trees or shrubs in the family Rosaceae, including the domesticated orchard apple, crab apples, wild apples, and rainberries. The genus is native to the temperate zone ...

'', various

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 exce ...

s *'' Phymatopus californicus'' - United States :*Recorded food plants: ''

Baccharis ''Baccharis'' is a genus of perennials and shrubs in the aster family (Asteraceae). They are commonly known as baccharises but sometimes referred to as "brooms", because many members have small thin leaves resembling the true brooms. They are ...

'', '' Eriophyllum'' *'' Phymatopus hectoides'' - United States :*Recorded food plants: ''

'', '' Horkelia'', ''

Scrophularia The genus ''Scrophularia'' of the family Scrophulariaceae comprises about 200 species of herbaceous flowering plants commonly known as figworts. Species of ''Scrophularia'' all share square stems, opposite leaves and open two-lipped flowers for ...

Description

The genus ''Phymatopus'' is considered

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 "unispe ...

and species can be distinguished by forewing pattern and male genitalia. ''Phymatopus'' lack spurs on the

tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it conn ...

e and like other members of the ''Hepialidae'', also lack a

proboscis A proboscis () is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In invertebrates, the term usually refers to tubular mouthparts used for feeding and sucking. In vertebrates, a proboscis is an elong ...

frenulum A frenulum (or frenum, plural: frenula or frena, from the Latin ''frēnulum'', "little bridle", the diminutive of ''frēnum'') is a small fold of tissue that secures the motion of a mobile organ in the body. In human anatomy Frenula on the h ...

and have very short antennae.

Gold swift

The gold swift (''Phymatopus hectus''), originally belonging to the genus '' Hepialus'', is widely distributed across Europe (central and northern) and the

Ural Mountains The Ural Mountains ( ; rus, Ура́льские го́ры, r=Uralskiye gory, p=ʊˈralʲskʲɪjə ˈɡorɨ; ba, Урал тауҙары) or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western ...

, follows the distribution of its food plant -

bracken Bracken (''Pteridium'') is a genus of large, coarse ferns in the family (biology), family Dennstaedtiaceae. Ferns (Pteridophyta) are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produ ...

and roots of '' Erica'', Primula, ''

Rumex The docks and sorrels, genus ''Rumex'', are a genus of about 200 species of annual, biennial, and perennial herbs in the buckwheat family, Polygonaceae. Members of this genus are very common perennial herbs with a native almost worldwide distri ...

'', ''

Calluna ''Calluna vulgaris'', common heather, ling, or simply heather, is the sole species in the genus ''Calluna'' in the flowering plant family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing evergreen shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found ...

''. The male forewings bear two silvery white stripes consisting of individual spots separated by dark

vein Veins are blood vessels in humans and most other animals that carry blood towards the heart. Most veins carry deoxygenated blood from the tissues back to the heart; exceptions are the pulmonary and umbilical veins, both of which carry oxygenated ...

s, which are fringed with thin black lines. The

dorsal Dorsal (from Latin ''dorsum'' ‘back’) may refer to: * Dorsal (anatomy), an anatomical term of location referring to the back or upper side of an organism or parts of an organism * Dorsal, positioned on top of an aircraft's fuselage * Dorsal c ...

process of valvella (part of male

) is almost straight, and the mesosome tip is rounded.

''Phymatopus hecta japonicus''

''Phymatopus hecta japonicus'' is found located in the Russian Far East:

Sakhalin Sakhalin ( rus, Сахали́н, r=Sakhalín, p=səxɐˈlʲin; ja, 樺太 ''Karafuto''; zh, c=, p=Kùyèdǎo, s=库页岛, t=庫頁島; Manchu: ᠰᠠᡥᠠᠯᡳᠶᠠᠨ, ''Sahaliyan''; Orok: Бугата на̄, ''Bugata nā''; Nivkh ...

island and southern

Kurils The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in th ...

; south of the Daisetsu mountains,

Hokkaido is Japan, Japan's Japanese archipelago, second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost Prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own List of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; th ...

, Japan. Its appearance is similar to ''P. hectus'' but differs in that the outer strip is usually uninterrupted. It consists of four or five silvery spots at the apex (anterior corner), two or three small spots moving slightly more inward and the largest one at the inner margin. The morphology of the male genitalia is also different from that of ''P. hectus'', the

ventral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

process of valvella is belt like, which tapers to a point as it reaches the distal quarter, the dorsal margin of valva is

convex Convex or convexity may refer to: Science and technology * Convex lens, in optics Mathematics * Convex set, containing the whole line segment that joins points ** Convex polygon, a polygon which encloses a convex set of points ** Convex polytop ...

. ''P. japonicus'' from Sakhalin has a maximum male

wingspan The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan o ...

of 25–26 mm and shows pale or greyish brown colouring on the forewings, whereas the male specimens from Kurilan tend to have a larger

of 30–31 mm, bright, reddish brown. The male genitalia also differs between specimens of Kurilian population and from Sakhalin, with Kurilian males having shorter mesosomes and a rounded tip of valva distal projection, as opposed to a tapering tip in Sakhalin males.

''Phymatopus hecticus''

''Phymatopus hecticus'' is found in eastern

. The forewing stripes are usually composed of golden-yellow or whitish coloured confluent spots without

metallic Metallic may be a reference to: *Metal *Metalloid, metal-like substance *Metallic bonding, type of chemical bonding *Metallicity, in astronomy the proportion of elements other than helium and hydrogen in an object *Metallic color, a color that g ...

lustre. In male genitalia, the

process of valvella is strongly curved in the distal part, giving it a hook-like appearance; there is also a clear cavity at the tip of the mesosome.

''Phymatopus hecticus albomaculatus''

''Phymatopus hecticus albomaculatus'' is found in eastern Russia, north of Primorskii krai. Both forewing stripes have a silvery-white appearance, with a metallic tinge, similar to '' Phymatopus hectus'' and '' Phymatopus haponicus'', also consisting of separated spots. However, they have differences in male genitalia; the shape of the eighth abdominal

sternum The sternum or breastbone is a long flat bone located in the central part of the chest. It connects to the ribs via cartilage and forms the front of the rib cage, thus helping to protect the heart, lungs, and major blood vessels from injury. Sha ...

and tip of mesosome. The length of forewing is about 14 mm in males, with a curved inner strip. The outer strip consists of three separated spots at the apex and two smaller spots moving inwards.

Range

Western Asia, North America - north of

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

, central and northern Europe. The Eurasian range consists solely of ''Phymatopus hectus'', and in North America the genus is represented by three species, which are geographically restricted to the western coastal region of the United States.

Life cycle

Larva

''Phymatopus'' are

root In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the su ...

and stem borers. It is not uncommon for the larvae to tunnel through the stems, as is the case of the western North American ''Phymatopus''. Tunnels can be found travelling through the base of the stems and also the adjacent stems in contact with

leaf A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ...

litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. Litter can also be used as a verb; to litter means to drop and leave objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups ...

and

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...

. Sometimes dead stems can also serve to provide tunnels which are active. As well as tunnelling through stems, some larvae (e.g. ''P. hectoides'') tunnel through the soil and feed on root tissues.

Pupa

In the pupae, one or two fixed basal abdominal segments. On the abdominal segments, there are dorsal spines aligned in rows, similar to some lower members of the Heteroneura.

Adult

Meiosis

As in other lepidopterans, early

prophase Prophase () is the first stage of cell division in both mitosis and meiosis. Beginning after interphase, DNA has already been replicated when the cell enters prophase. The main occurrences in prophase are the condensation of the chromatin ret ...

I stage of

meiosis Meiosis (; , since it is a reductional division) is a special type of cell division of germ cells in sexually-reproducing organisms that produces the gametes, such as sperm or egg cells. It involves two rounds of division that ultimately ...

occurs as normal, but there is no crossing over or chiasma formation in the females at the prophase I stage. The males on the other hand show conventional meiotic recombination.

Mating

In many hepialids, the female releases attractants to draw in males. This is the ancestral condition whereas in ''Phymatopus'', the opposite occurs, with males attracting females. See also Gold swift

Host plants and food plants

Host plant: *''Pteridium'' (

) Food plants: *Brooms (''

'') *'' Horkelia'' *Figworts (''

'') *Woolly sunflower ('' Eriophyllum'') *Sneezeweed ('' Helenium'') *Lupins/ lupines ('' Lupinus'') *Apple trees (''

'') :*Roots of: *''Erica'' (

heaths A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a coole ...

) *'' Primula'' *Docks and sorrels (''

'') *Common heather / ling (''

'')

Mobility

Mobility is defined as the ability to migrate. According to the

metapopulation A metapopulation consists of a group of spatially separated populations of the same species which interact at some level. The term metapopulation was coined by Richard Levins in 1969 to describe a model of population dynamics of insect pests in ...

theory, migration is important for individuals to colonize new areas and recolonize old ones to avoid

extinction Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the Endling, last individual of the species, although the Functional ext ...

. Moths, like other insects, are only mobile in the

larval A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

and

adult An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of maj ...

stages. Mobility at the larval stage is limited and required mainly to find food and an

optimal Mathematical optimization (alternatively spelled ''optimisation'') or mathematical programming is the selection of a best element, with regard to some criterion, from some set of available alternatives. It is generally divided into two subfi ...

environment to pupate. According to van der Meulen and Groenendijk's classification, ''Phymatopus'' exhibit area restricted, limited wandering behaviour and small flight range.

References

External links

Hepialidae genera
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1944694 Hepialidae Exoporia genera Taxa named by Hans Daniel Johan Wallengren