| Wurthiini | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Niphopyralis chionesis , adult | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Crambidae |
| Subfamily: | Spilomelinae |
| Tribe: | Wurthiini Roepke, 1916 [1] |
Wurthiini is a tribe of the species-rich subfamily Spilomelinae in the pyraloid moth family Crambidae.
Adult Wurthiini are small to medium-sized moths with wing spans of normally 20 to over 30 mm, [2] [3] whereas adults of Niphopyralis are usually somewhat smaller, with wingspans of 12 to 22 mm, and the males being smaller than the females. [4] [5] [6]
In the male genitalia, the uncus consists of a single head bearing stiff chaetae, or it is bicapitate (Niphopyralis). The tegumen-vinculum complex is more or less elongate rounded. The valvae are slender and tapering towards the apex, with the costa weakly to strongly concave (e.g. in Apilocrocis novateutonialis; see [2] : 444 ). The juxta is usually deeply split or divided into two juxta arms (a synapomorphy of the tribe). The fibula is broad triangular and ventrally directed. On its mesal side, the valva sacculus is produced as a strongly sclerotised arm that usually ends dorsally in a broad, spinulose tip or a needleshaped projection, and in Aristebulea, Mimetebulea and Pseudebulea, the mediodorsal sacculus bears a medially directed process. The male genitalia of Niphopyralis are highly derived. [7] : 171
The female genitalia exhibit a strongly sclerotised lamella antevaginalis and usually a short, membraneous ductus bursae (strongly sclerotised in Niphopyralis). The signum in the corpus bursae is either absent (Mimetebulea, Niphopyralis) or present as a small to large rounded to short transverse sclerotisation. [3] [2] [7]
The larvae and pupae of Wurthiini are only known for Niphopyralis ; [5] [6] see there for a morphological description.
Very little is known about the food plants of Wurthiini. The caterpillars of Apilocrocis glaucosia feed on Celtis iguanaea (Cannabaceae). [8]
The larvae of Niphopyralis are myrmecophilous brood parasites in nests of nest-weaving ants of the genera Oecophylla and Polyrhachis , where they feed on their hosts' eggs, larvae and pupae. [5] [6]
The genera Apilocrocis and Diaphantania are found in the Americas, with the latter one confined to the Antilles, whereas the other genera are distributed in the East Palearctic, Oriental and Australasian realms. [1]
Wurthiini currently contains nine genera, altogether comprising 42 species: [1] [9]
Wurthiini was erected by Walter Karl Johann Roepke in 1916 as subfamily Wurthiinae in Arctiidae (now Arctiinae), with Wurthia (a synonym of Niphopyralis ) as its type genus. [5] [1] The placement of Niphopyralis, and with this the status of Wurthiini, was long unclear due to its unusual Limacodidae-like habitus and the lack of a proboscis. In 1923, the back then still valid genus Wurthia was transferred to Schoenobiinae, [6] where also Niphopyralis had been described in 1893 by George Hampson. [4] In 1981, Niphopyralis was transferred to Pyraustinae, [10] while Wurthia remained in Schoenobiinae. It was not until 1996 that Wurthia was recognized as synonym of Niphopyralis. [11]
Regier et al. (2012) found Niphopyralis to be an ingroup of Spilomelinae, and they consequently synonymised the name Wurthiinae with Spilomelinae. [12] Eventually, in 2019 the name Wurthiini was re-erected as tribe in its current form within Spilomelinae. [7]
Crambidae comprises the grass moth family of lepidopterans. They are variable in appearance, with the nominal subfamily Crambinae taking up closely folded postures on grass stems where they are inconspicuous, while other subfamilies include brightly coloured and patterned insects that rest in wing-spread attitudes.
Pyraustinae is a large subfamily of the lepidopteran family Crambidae, the crambid snout moths. It currently includes about 1,280 species Most of them tropical but some found in temperate regions including both North America and Europe.
Spilomelinae is a very species-rich subfamily of the lepidopteran family Crambidae, the crambid snout moths. With 4,135 described species in 344 genera worldwide, it is the most speciose group among pyraloids.
Hydropionea is a genus of moths of the family Crambidae. The 13 described species are distributed in Central and South America.
Udea is a genus of snout moths in the subfamily Spilomelinae of the family Crambidae. The genus was erected by Achille Guenée in 1845. The currently known 216 species are present on all continents except Antarctica. About 41 species are native to Hawaii.
Niphopyralis is a genus of snout moths of the subfamily Spilomelinae in the family Crambidae.
Loxocorys is a genus of moths of the family Crambidae. The genus was erected by Edward Meyrick in 1894, and has long been considered a synonym of Luma before it was reinstated as genus with the sole species Loxocorys sericea . A phylogenetic analysis showed that Loxocorys is placed in the Spilomelinae tribe Wurthiini, and in genitalia morphology it shares similarities with Niphopyralis.
Lygropia is a genus of snout moths in the subfamily Spilomelinae of the family Crambidae. It currently comprises 66 species, which are mostly found in the tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, Africa and Asia, but not in Australia.
Terastia is a genus of snout moths in the subfamily Spilomelinae of the family Crambidae. It was described by Achille Guenée in 1854 with Terastia meticulosalis as type species. The genus is currently placed in the tribe Margaroniini, where it is closely related to the genera Agathodes and Liopasia.
Midilinae is a subfamily of the lepidopteran family Crambidae. It was described by Eugene G. Munroe in 1958. The 11 genera altogether comprise 59 species, with the majority of them occurring in the Neotropical realm, whereas the species of the genera Dolichobela and Styphlolepis are found in Australia.
Lathrotelinae is a subfamily of the pyraloid family Crambidae described by John Frederick Gates Clarke in 1971. It currently comprises 45 species in six genera.
Hydririni is a tribe of the species-rich subfamily Spilomelinae in the pyraloid moth family Crambidae.
Lineodini is a tribe of the species-rich subfamily Spilomelinae in the snout moth family Crambidae.
Udeini is a tribe in the species-rich subfamily Spilomelinae in the pyraloid moth family Crambidae. The tribe was erected by Richard Mally, James E. Hayden, Christoph Neinhuis, Bjarte H. Jordal and Matthias Nuss in 2019.
Herpetogrammatini is a tribe of the species-rich subfamily Spilomelinae in the pyraloid moth family Crambidae. The tribe was erected by Richard Mally, James E. Hayden, Christoph Neinhuis, Bjarte H. Jordal and Matthias Nuss in 2019.
Asciodini is a tribe of the species-rich subfamily Spilomelinae in the pyraloid moth family Crambidae. The tribe was erected by Richard Mally, James E. Hayden, Christoph Neinhuis, Bjarte H. Jordal and Matthias Nuss in 2019.
Steniini is a tribe of the species-rich subfamily Spilomelinae in the pyraloid moth family Crambidae. The tribe was erected by Achille Guenée in 1854.
Cheverella is a monotypic genus of snout moths in the subfamily Spilomelinae of the family Crambidae. It contains only one species, Cheverella galapagensis, which is endemic to the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador. Both the genus and the species were first described by Bernard Landry in 2011. The genus is placed in the tribe Udeini.
Erupinae is a subfamily of the lepidopteran family Crambidae. It was described by Eugene G. Munroe in 1995.
Portentomorphini is a tribe of the subfamily Pyraustinae in the pyraloid moth family Crambidae. The tribe was initially erected by Hans Georg Amsel in 1956.