Ermine moth

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Certain members of the unrelated snout moths (Pyralidae) are also known as "ermine moths." Spilosoma lubricipeda is an unrelated moth with the common name "white ermine."

Ermine moth
Yponomeuta evonymella01.jpg
Yponomeuta evonymella
Web covered tree 3.JPG
Communal larval web
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Superfamily: Yponomeutoidea
Family: Yponomeutidae
Stephens, 1829
Diversity
600 species

The family Yponomeutidae are known as the ermine moths , with several hundred species, most of them in the tropics. The larvae tend to form communal webs, [1] and some are minor pests in agriculture, forestry, and horticulture. Adult moths are minor pollinators.

Contents

Taxonomy

The traditional morphology based taxonomy of Kyrki (1990) divided Yponomeutidae into six subfamilies, but this circumscription is not found to be monophyletic in molecular phylogenetic analyses. [2] [3] van Nieukerken et al (2011) split off Praydidae, Attevidae and Argyresthiidae as separate families, and Sohn (2013) elevated Scythropiinae to family to contain Scythropia. [2] [3]

The two remaining subfamilies are: [2]

The following genera have not been assigned subfamilies:

Characteristics

Larvae of Ermine moths at the bottom of their cocoon Gespinstmottenlarven.Landschaftsschutzgebiet.Grossbeeren.jpg
Larvae of Ermine moths at the bottom of their cocoon

Ermine moths are small to medium-sized moths varying in wingspan from 8 to 31 mm (0.3 to 1.2 in). The heads mostly have smooth scales, the haustellum is naked and the labial palps are curved upwards. The maxillary palps usually consist of one or two segments. The wings are long, often with fringes on the trailing edges of the hindwings. The colour is usually white, pale grey or drab, often with many dark speckles. [4]

Adult ermine moths are mostly nocturnal.

The larvae are leaf-webbers, leaf skeletonizers, leafminers or needleminers and are found on a variety of host plants. Some cause economic damage to crops and trees. [4]

Species (selection)

Better-known species include:

Etymology

The word Yponomeutidae comes from the Ancient Greek ὑπό (ypo) meaning under and νομός (nomós) meaning food or dwelling, thus "feeding secretly, or burrow". [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nolidae</span> Family of moths

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yponomeutoidea</span> Superfamily of moths

Yponomeutoidea is a superfamily of ermine moths and relatives. There are about 1,800 species of Yponomeutoids worldwide, most of them known to come from temperate regions. This superfamily is one of the earliest groups to evolve external feeding and to colonize herbs in addition to shrubs and trees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taxonomy of the Lepidoptera</span> Classification of moths and butterflies

The insect order Lepidoptera consists of moths, most of which are night-flying, and a derived group, mainly day-flying, called butterflies. Within Lepidoptera as a whole, the groups listed below before Glossata contain a few basal families accounting for less than 200 species; the bulk of Lepidoptera are in the Glossata. Similarly, within the Glossata, there are a few basal groups listed first, with the bulk of species in the Heteroneura. Basal groups within Heteroneura cannot be defined with as much confidence, as there are still some disputes concerning the proper relations among these groups. At the family level, however, most groups are well defined, and the families are commonly used by hobbyists and scientists alike.

<i>Cedestis gysseleniella</i> Species of moth

Cedestis gysseleniella is a moth of the family Yponomeutidae. It is found in Europe and parts of Russia.

Paraargyresthia is a genus of moths of the family Yponomeutidae.

Distagmos is a genus of moths of the family Plutellidae.

Prays amblystola is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by Alfred Jefferis Turner in 1923 and is found in New South Wales, Australia.

Prays calycias is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by Edward Meyrick in 1907 and is found in Australia.

Prays inscripta is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by Edward Meyrick in 1907 and is found in Australia. The larvae feed on Phebalium plants.

Prays ducalis is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by English entomologist Edward Meyrick in 1914 based a single specimen collected in Sri Lanka.

Prays erebitis is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by English entomologist Edward Meyrick in 1914 based on two specimens collected in Ootacamund, India.

Prays chrysophyllae is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by Italian entomologist Filippo Silvestri in 1915 and is known from Eritrea. The larvae feed on wild olive.

Prays friesei is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It is found on the Canary Islands and Madeira. The larvae feed on Chrysojasminum odoratissimum and Picconia excelsa.

Prays fulvocanella is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It is endemic to the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Species of Melicope and Zanthoxylum may serve as hosts for P. fulvocanella larvae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Argyresthiidae</span> Family of moths

Argyresthiidae is a family of moths known as the shiny head-standing moths. It was previously treated as a subfamily of Yponomeutidae.

Prays liophaea is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by English entomologist Edward Meyrick in 1927 based on two specimens collected from Stellenbosch, South Africa.

Prays peperitis is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by English entomologist Edward Meyrick in 1907 based on seven specimens collected in Sri Lanka.

Prays sparsipunctella is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by Italian entomologist Emilio Turati in 1924 and is known from Benghazi, Libya.

Prays xeroloxa is a species of moth in the family Praydidae. It was described by English entomologist Edward Meyrick in 1935 based on larvae collected from the island of Java and reared on Harrisonia leaves.

Prays omicron is a moth of the family Praydidae. It is found in Japan.

References

  1. ↑ James, David G. (2017). The Book of Caterpillars: A Life-Size Guide to Six Hundred Species from Around the World. University of Chicago Press. p. 288. ISBN   978-0-226-28736-2.
  2. 1 2 3 Lewis, Jon; Sohn, Jae-Cheon (2015). Lepidoptera: Yponomeutoidea I (Argyresthiidae, Attevidae, Praydidae, Scythropiidae, and Yponomeutidae). Netherlands: Brill. p. 1. ISBN   9789004264267.
  3. 1 2 van Nieukerken, Erik J.; Kaila, Lauri; Kitching, Ian J.; Kristensen, Niels P.; Lees, David C.; Minet, Joël; Mitter, Charles; Mutanen, Marko; Regier, Jerome C.; Simonsen, Thomas J.; Wahlberg, Niklas; Yen, Shen-Horn; Zahiri, Reza; Adamski, David; Baixeras, Joaquin; Bartsch, Daniel; Bengtsson, Bengt Å.; Brown, John W.; Bucheli, Sibyl Rae; Davis, Donald R.; De Prins, Jurate; De Prins, Willy; Epstein, Marc E.; Gentili-Poole, Patricia; Gielis, Cees; Hättenschwiler, Peter; Hausmann, Axel; Holloway, Jeremy D.; Kallies, Axel; Karsholt, Ole; Kawahara, Akito Y.; Koster, Sjaak (J.C.); Kozlov, Mikhail V.; Lafontaine, J. Donald; Lamas, Gerardo; Landry, Jean-François; Lee, Sangmi; Nuss, Matthias; Park, Kyu-Tek; Penz, Carla; Rota, Jadranka; Schintlmeister, Alexander; Schmidt, B. Christian; Sohn, Jae-Cheon; Solis, M. Alma; Tarmann, Gerhard M.; Warren, Andrew D.; Weller, Susan; Yakovlev, Roman V.; Zolotuhin, Vadim V.; Zwick, Andreas (23 December 2011). Zhang, Zhi-Qiang (ed.). "Order Lepidoptera Linnaeus, 1758" (PDF). Zootaxa. Animal biodiversity: An outline of higher-level classification and survey of taxonomic richness. 3148: 212–221.
  4. 1 2 Heppner, John B. (2008). "Ermine Moths (Lepidoptera:Yponomeuthidae)". In Capinera, John L. (ed.). Encyclopedia of Entomology. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 1360–1361. ISBN   978-1-4020-6242-1.
  5. ↑ Westwood, J. O. (October 1837). Loudon, John Claudius (ed.). "A series of Articles on the Insects most Injurious to Cultivators -- No. 8. The small Ermine Moth". The Gardener's Magazine and Register of Rural and Domestic Improvement. 13: 434.
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