Pterophoroidea & Alucitoidea (Lepidoptera) – In: World Catalogue of Insects 4

Abstract

This world catalog of the superfamilies Pterophoroidea and Alucitoidea is Volume 4 of a series in progress by Apollo Books. These fascinating “micromoth” superfamilies are called “plume moths” and “many-plumed moths” because most of the species have wings that are cleft into feathery, long-fringed lobes. At rest, the elegantly slender-bodied and longlegged plume moths often fold their wings and hold them out from their body in an easily recognizable T shape. They arewidely distributed and found in all the terrestrial biomes. The often hairy larvae typically feed on leaves, sowers, and stems of a variety of forbs, including many composites and some plants in the mint, Þgwort, pea, and morning glory families. Very few species of these poorly knowngroups havewidely used common names. The last world catalog comparable to Gielis was Meyrick (1913). However, study of these moths has recently undergone a modest revival, especially in Europe. The systematics has been greatly advanced, but it is still in sux. The biology of many species is still unknown or poorly known. This most-welcome book presents a complete and current classiÞcation and nomenclature, a comprehensive bibliography as well as a useful host plant list and summary distribution for 1,300 species. Although some features of the classiÞcation may be disputed and eventually superseded, and somemostly typographical errors are evident, the book Þlls a void in the literature on Pterophoroidea andAlucitoidea. Aswould be expected for a “catalog,” this book of annotated lists is not an identiÞcation or Þeld guide, and it contains no illustrations or descriptive information. The high-quality paper, print, and binding make it attractive and durable. Theauthor,CeesGielis, is a researchassociateof the National Natural History Museum in Leiden and a leading specialist and world authority on the family Pterophoridae. He is widely published, including a 1993 generic revision of the superfamily Pterophoroidea, a 1996 monograph on the Pterophoridae of Europe, numerous new species descriptions, and taxonomicactions.Michael Shaffer collaboratedwithGielis on the small family Tineodidae. Shaffer is the highly regarded, retired curator of Pyraloidea and Pterophoroidea at what is now The Natural History Museum, London. Volume 4 is edited by Hugo van der Wolf. Gielis treats the Pterophoroidea as comprised of two families: Pterophoridae, with 1,136 described species in four subfamilies and 89 genera; and Macropiratidae,with three species, all in the genusAgdistopsis. The Alucitoidea is treated as being comprised of two families: Alucitidae, with 186 species in nine genera; and Tineodidae, with 19 species in 11 genera. Several new synonyms and one new replacement name are presented, but without discussion. The books introduction refers to previous catalogs and checklists. The sources of information are discussed, and the format of the annotated species list is outlined. A breakdown of the classiÞcation used for the two superfamilies is shown to the genus level, and the number of species in each taxon is given. The core of this book is the annotated catalog itselfNa list of animal names with associated authorship, year of publication, synonyms, and other information. At the genus group and higher levels of classiÞcation, taxa are arranged in the phylogenetic order proposed by the author.Within each genus, the species names are listed in alphabetical order. Below each species name, the following information from the original description is given: genus in which the species was originally described, species name as originally spelled, year of publication, page number, and country of the type locality. Next, synonyms are listed with the same format and information. Additional annotation includes larval host plant names when known, parasite names when known, and distribution by biogeographic region and country insofar as the author considers the data to be valid. Several additional lists complete the book. One list catalogs the single fossil pterophorid species that has been named. Another is a “Comprehensive Reference List,” which is 45 pages and will save the serious researcher countless hours tracking down original descriptions and other literature. Next are indices of the dipterous and hymenopterous parasites. An index of hostplants is orderedalphabeticallybygenusand then by species within a genus. As might be expected from the concentration of detailed andexacting information in this catalog, some errors are present. The publisher has provided an errata sheet, but at present this sheet is incomplete. The errors include misspellings of some names of taxa and people, occasional incorrect use of the conventional parentheses around author name when originally described in a genus other than the current genus, onemention of an incorrect family name, a few omissions, and a few incorrect years of publication. Unfortunately, some of these errors may not be detectedbya readerwhodoesnot checkoriginal sources and might thus be repeated in subsequent literature. I thank Alma Solis, Deborah Matthews, and Cees Gielis for comments and suggestions that helped me write this review.