Batrachedridae
Batrachedra praeangusta
The Batrachedridae are a family of butterflies.
Features
The representatives of the Batrachedridae reach a wingspan of 10-15 millimeters. The antennae are about as long as the forewing, the basal antennal segment ( scape ) is short and has a single bristle. The eyes are moderate, ocelli absent. The labial palps are rather long, curved upward and forward not tufted or shed. The third segment is slightly shorter than the second. The fore wings are straight and have two conspicuous black spots in the costal fold. The vein R5 of the forewing is reduced, the veins M1 and M2 are inconspicuous at the base. The hind wings are very narrow and straight, the veins M1 and M2 are stalked. At the outer edge only four wires are present. On the Hintertibien are located outside the Tibienmittelpunkt a pair of spurs. The Abdominaltergite II to VII have a pair of longitudinally extending rows deeply layered, special lanceolate scales.
The larvae are long, slender and cylindrical. They are yellow and have no secondary bristles. They are highly portable.
The dolls have exposed labial palps and Vorderfemura. The abdominal segments IV to VI are movable. A Kremasterspitze is not formed, there are only small thorn hooks on the Abdomenspitze available.
The cocoons are spindle-shaped, double-walled and covered with Raupenkot and detritus.
Dissemination
The Batrachedridae family is not very rich in species, the areas with the greatest biodiversity are in America and the Afrotropical. In the Palearctic only 10 species occur.
Biology
The moths of the family are mainly tied to forest areas, sometimes they are also found in parks and avenues. The larvae live in web galleries between or in the reproductive organs of plants. As larvae serve food mainly dicotyledonous plants, but also monocot and conifers. In the tropics and subtropics, some species are considered pests of palms. In exceptional cases, Myrmekophilie was observed. One finds the moths often rest on tree trunks, where they show a striking repose. In this case the front part of the body is raised, and the front face to the rear legs. If the moth disturbed, they run fast on the bark or jump it. The moths come readily to light.
System
The Batrachedridae is a specialized group of moths, which is characterized by two Autapomorphieen. The wings are extremely narrow, show a reduced venation and the moth have a very striking repose. Most genital characteristics ( with the exception of the sometimes very long aedeagus ) and the morphology of the head are more likely plesiomorphic for Gelechioidea. Various features such as the unspecialized lifestyle of caterpillars, the binding of the beads to the reproductive organs mainly of trees and the low species diversity and the lack of geographical diversity center suggest that it is at the Batrachedridae a small, sophisticated group of butterflies with special features. The Batrachedridae are therefore treated as monophyletic and well-defined family, which is closely related to the Coleophoridae.
In Europe, the family is represented by three species:
- Genus Batrachedra Batrachedra parvulipunctella Chrétien, 1915
- Batrachedra pinicolella (Zeller, 1839)
- Batrachedra praeangusta ( Haworth, 1828)