The Pterophoridae or plume moths are a family of Lepidoptera with unusually modified wings. Though they belong to the Apoditrysia like the larger moths and the butterflies, unlike these they are tiny and were formerly included among the assemblage called "microlepidoptera".
Stenoptilia zophodactylus, also known as the dowdy plume, is a species of moth of the family Pterophoridae found worldwide. It was first described by Philogène Auguste Joseph Duponchel in 1840.
Macropiratidae is a family of moths which has sometimes been treated as a subfamily of the Pterophoridae, owing to the resemblance between specimens of Macropiratidae and plume moths of the genus Agdistis, at least when preserved as pinned specimens. The family contains a single genus Agdistopis with three species.
Deuterocopus socotranus is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. It is found from India and Sri Lanka to Taiwan and Japan and through south-east Asia to New Guinea and Australia, where it is found from Townsville to Brisbane in Queensland. It is also present in Africa, Oman and Yemen.
Platyptilia isodactylus is a moth of the family Pterophoridae found in China, Europe and was introduced to Australia and New Zealand for biological control. It was first described by the German entomologists, Philipp Christoph Zeller in 1852.
Lantanophaga pusillidactyla, the lantana plume moth, is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. It is native to the southern United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, and South America. It was introduced to Australia accidentally in 1936 and is now found from Sydney to Cairns along the coast. It has also been introduced to Hawaii in 1902, Pohnpei in 1948, and Palau in 1960 for biological control. It has since been recorded from Yap in 1987–1988 and is now distributed on all islands of the Mariana and Caroline Islands where the host plant is found, except Aguijan.
Exelastis pumilio is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. It has worldwide tropical distribution, including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Suriname, Japan, Micronesia, South Africa the Virgin Islands as well as Queensland and New Guinea.
Sphenarches zanclistes is a moth of the family Pterophoridae that is found in Australia.
Nippoptilia cinctipedalis is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. It is found in Australia, Korea, Japan (Kyushu), China, Micronesia, the Republic of Palau and Vietnam.
Platyptilia farfarellus is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. The species was described by Philipp Christoph Zeller in 1867. It is found from central and southern Europe to Asia Minor, Micronesia and Japan. It is also known from Africa, where it has been recorded from Equatorial Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, São Tomé & Principe, Tanzania, Uganda, the Seychelles and Malawi.
Stenodacma wahlbergi is a moth of the family Pterophoridae described by Philipp Christoph Zeller in 1851. It is known from Japan, China, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Sri Lanka, India, Central, East and South Africa, St. Helena, Mauritius, the Seychelles and Rodrigues. It has recently been recorded from Vietnam. Records for Australia were based on synonymisation with Stenodacma pyrrhodes.
Adaina microdactyla is a moth of the family Pterophoridae first described by Jacob Hübner in 1813. Also known as the hemp-agrimony plume, it is found in Africa, Asia and Europe.
Sphenarches is a genus of moths in the family Pterophoridae. Species in this genus are distributed in regions with pantropical climates, and are also found in Japan and southern Canada. Host plants for the genus are Dolichos lablab, Lagenaria leucantha clavata, and L. leucantha gourda.
Platyptilia molopias is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. It has a very wide distribution in the Old World tropics, ranging from Africa through India and Sri Lanka, east to Indonesia. It is also found in the Philippines on Luzon, Mindoro, Negros and Mindanao.
Agdistis adactyla is a moth species in the family Pterophoridae, and the type species of genus Agdistis. It is known from most of the Palearctic realm, where it occurs from central and south-western Europe and North Africa to eastern Asia.
Sphenarches caffer, the bottle gourd plume moth, is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. It is known from India, Malaysia, Mauritius, the Seychelles and South Africa.
Adaina bipunctatus is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. It is found in the United States, including Florida and Mississippi. It has also been recorded from Trinidad, the West Indies, Brazil and Ecuador.
Amblyptilia pica, the geranium plume moth, is a moth of the family Pterophoridae. The species was first described by Baron Walsingham in 1880. It is found in western North America from Alaska to California, inland to Alberta and Kansas. It is also found in the north-eastern United States and Ontario.
