Alucitidae

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Classis: Insecta
Cladus: Dicondylia
Subclassis: Pterygota
Cladus: Metapterygota
Infraclassis: Neoptera
Cladus: Eumetabola
Cladus: Endopterygota
Superordo: Panorpida
Cladus: Amphiesmenoptera
Ordo: Lepidoptera
Subordo: Glossata
Cladus: Coelolepida
Cladus: Myoglossata
Cladus: Neolepidoptera
Infraordo: Heteroneura
Cladus: Eulepidoptera
Cladus: Ditrysia
Cladus: Apoditrysia
Superfamilia: Alucitoidea

Familia: Alucitidae
Subfamilia: Microschisminae

Genera: Alinguata – Alucita – Hebdomactis – Hexeretmis – Microschismus – Orneodes – Paelia – Prymnotomis – Pterotopteryx – Triscaedecia
Name

Alucitidae Leach, 1815.

Type genus: Alucita Linnaeus, 1758.
References

in Brewster's Edinburgh Ency. 9 (1): 135

Gielis, C., 2003: World Catalogue of Insects Volume 4, Pterophoroidea & Alucitoidea (Lepidoptera)
Mastrigt van, H. & C. Gielis, 2009: Some important notes on Alucitidae (Lepidoptera) of Papua, Indonesia, with description of a new species. SUGAPA (Suara Serangga Papua) 4(2): 34–39.
Ustjuzhanin, P. & V. Kovtunovich, 2011: A Revision of the Genus: Microschismus Fletcher, 1909 (Lepidoptera: Alucitidae). African Invertebrates 52 (2)': 557–550. Abstract: [1].
Ustjuzhanin, P. & Kovtunovich, V. 2016. The Alucitidae (Lepidoptera) of Malawi with descriptions of five new species. Zootaxa 4126(4): 533–547. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4126.4.5 Reference page.

Vernacular names
беларуская: Веерніцы
中文: 多翼蛾科

The Alucitidae or many-plumed moths[1] are a family of moths with unusually modified wings. Both fore- and hind-wings consist of about six rigid spines, from which radiate flexible bristles creating a structure similar to a bird's feather.

This is a small family, with about a global total of 210 species described to date (though it is likely that some undescribed species remain to be discovered). They are found mostly in temperate to subtropical (but not tropical) regions. But they are rare even in parts of their core range; both in Great Britain and North America for example, only one species is found – the twenty-plume moth (Alucita hexadactyla) – and in the latter region, it is introduced. This smallish moth can often be found fluttering in the evening twilight or resting with its "wings" outstretched. Its larvae feed on honeysuckle (Lonicera). On the other hand, in Continental Europe a considerable number of species, mostly of the large genus Alucita, occur.
Systematics and taxonomy

The taxonomy of this family is somewhat disputed. Here, they are united in superfamily Alucitoidea with the Tineodidae, a diverse group of numerous small genera with about 20 species all together. However, the two supposed Alucitoidea families may be polyphyletic with regard to each other, and Tineodidae better included in Alucitidae. In any case, the similar-looking plume moths (Pterophoroidea) are widely held to be very close, if not the closest living relatives of the Alucitoidea.[2]

Earlier, many authors assumed that the fruitworm moths (Copromorphoidea) were also very closely related to the Alucitidae (and the fringe-tufted moths, Epermeniidae) – according to some, closer in fact than the Pterophoroidea and even the Tineodidae. In this Alucitoidea do not exist; Alucitidae and Tineodidae are assigned to different (but still most closely related) superfamilies. In the treatment here, the Copromorphoidea are presumed to be the most advanced of these lineages of small but fairly "modern" moths, while the Alucitoidea and Pterophoroidea are more primitive.[2][3]
Genera

The genera presently placed here, sorted alphabetically, are:[3]

Alinguata
Alucita
Hebdomactis
Hexeretmis
Microschismus
Paelia
Prymnotomis
Pterotopteryx
Triscaedecia

Footnotes

ToL (2003)
Minet (1991)

Wikispecies (2010)

References

Data related to Alucitidae at Wikispecies. Version of 2010-AUG-10.[circular reference]
Minet, Joel (1991): Tentative reconstruction of the ditrysian phylogeny (Lepidoptera: Glossata). Entomologica Scandinavica 22(1): 69–95. doi:10.1163/187631291X00327 (HTML abstract)
Tree of Life Web Project (ToL) (2003): Alucitoidea. Version of 2003-JAN-01. Retrieved 2011-SEP-24.