Hedylidae

Macrosoma conifera

The Hedylidae are a family of butterflies. All kinds of good with 40 species relatively small family living in South or Central America ( Neotropics ). The family has received great attention from evolutionary biologists, since recent findings indicate its probably very close relationship with the butterflies.

Features

Butterfly

It is small, relatively gracile built moths. The long, rather narrow forewings are often indented more or less wide at the apex ( emarginate ). Your coloring is different, some species are colored white in the way macrosoma heliconiaria and related species, the butterflies of the genus Heliconius wing pattern similar to (family Nymphalidae ), but most species are inconspicuous gray, brown and white drawn. Many species have transparent patches on the wings. Top and bottom sides of the wing are equal patterned. The Flügeladerung shows some peculiarities: As the veins Rs1 and Rs2 s- shaped ( sinuat ) are bent, Rs2 and Rs3 are down to the base separately ( without a common peduncle), Rs3 and Rs4, however, are stalked together. Front and rear wings have at least in the males typical of most butterflies coupling mechanism with frenulum and retinaculum, while the wings of the butterflies have lost this. With them are the wings by overlapping ( " amplexiform " ) coupled. At the base of the front wing sits a Tympanalorgan in a hidden pocket between the subcostal and Cubitalader, with which the animals can hear the echolocation of bats. When listening to the ultrasound they try evasive maneuvers such as sharp turns to fly. While it was believed until recently that butterflies would not be capable of doing, it was found recently that at least some species with a " bird organ " said structure, which is homologous to the Tympanalorgan the Hedylidae, to also be able.

The head bears long, threadlike antennae and scaly, in some species, the antennae of the male are combed. The compound eyes are large. As is typical of night live butterflies, the Hedylidae have so-called superposition eyes. By an air-filled tapetum in the fundus, they light up when they are illuminated. The ocelli absent, instead a Chaetosema is available. The proboscis is formed normally. The labial palps are directed tripartite and upwards, with a deep indentation ( meaning field) in the last segment. The tibiae of the front legs have no spurs, that of the middle legs each have a pair, the rear one or two rare pair. The Vordertarsen the males have only two members of the pretarsus is regressed, except for two small claws rudiments. The animals do not use the front legs for resting or running, but wear them bent at the body. The abdomen is narrow but high, somewhat laterally compressed and noticeably bent.

Egg

The eggs of macrosoma semiermis are elongated and vertically glued ( with the narrow side ) on the leaf surface of the caterpillar food plant. The egg is sculptured with seven strong longitudinal ribs and about 30 indistinct transverse ribs and thus resembles the eggs of many whites. The egg stage of almost all other species is unknown.

Crawler

The caterpillars and other stages of development are not known by all species. When the become known types of head carries two very striking, horn -like extensions. Also the rear end wearing a long, furca -called extension which is formed from the redesigned Analplatte of the tenth abdominal segment. The head bears six larval eyes ( stemmata ). On abdomen sitting feet on the segments three to six and the last ( tenth ) segment. From macrosoma tipulata five larval stages are given.

Dolls

The dolls of Hedylidae are remarkable in that they are not enclosed in a cocoon, but free, fixed with a silk ribbon around the thorax are ( belt doll ), as typical for butterflies.

Way of life

The biology of most species is poorly known. Many have become established only by light traps, without it being known more about their lifestyle. Although occasional observations of flying on days individuals have been made (especially by the right contrast colored macrosoma heliconiaria ), they are probably mainly nocturnal. The type Macrosema heliconiaria was in Tamaulipas, Mexico on leaves of the liana Byttneria aculeata ( Mallow ) found with these, she was breed to the imago, but the information may relate more to the very similar, only genitalmorphologisch distinguishable macrosoma semiermis. At rest, the well-camouflaged caterpillar along the midrib of the leaf sets. Macrosoma tipulata has been observed in Brazil as a pest on cupuaçu ( Theobroma grandiflorum, Malvaceae ), which erodes the leaves here until defoliation.

Dissemination

The family is in South and Central America, north to Mexico, Cuba and Trinidad, widespread. Findings are of different height levels prior to the mountain forest belt. Center manifold is proven Peru with 26 species. In Manaus ( Brazil) on Amazon nine species were found with light traps, a total of 18 species are known from Brazil. Off Panama nine species are given.

Taxonomy

The group was rewritten in 1857 by Achille Guenee in the rank of a family, who also described three species in the same plant, which he then assigned three genera. Later, they were then considered part of the family of the tensioner ( Geometridae ), usually in the rank of a tribe of the subfamily Oenochrominae. Malcolm J. Scoble noted in its revision of the group to family rank, restore, and pointed to the possible relationships among the butterflies out (see under Sources). In this processing, he ordered to all described species of the genus hitherto macrosoma Hübner, 1818. Thus, the family would be monotypic. This view is largely accepted at the time, although a fundamental revision as before, even after Scoble's owner view is outstanding. Type genus of the family is Hedyle Guenée, 1857, synonymized by Scoble with macrosoma. The name of the family is not adjusted according to the rules of zoological nomenclature ( since 1960) to such name changes.

Phylogeny and Systematics

The Hedylidae are closely related according to the present morphological and molecular data with very high probability with the butterflies. Yet there are different hypotheses about their exact position. Argument for a relationship with the butterflies, among other things the construction of the doll as a doll belt, against classification as a tensioner already speaks the different form and moving, the caterpillars. Anatomical arguments for a relationship include the shape of the first abdominal Tergits, the shape of the apophysis of the metathorakalen furca ( an extension of the exoskeleton inside, which serves as a muscle attachment ) and the partial regression of the front legs of the male. Also the matching construction of Tympanalorgane (see above) is remarkable, while Spanner, like most " Macrolepidoptera " Tympanalorgane possess abdomen.

Studies on morphological base ( or "total evidence" approach for morphological and molecular results combined) have then usually assumed a basal position of the Hedylidae which would therefore put together a sister group to Dickkopffalter (family Hesperiidae ) and other butterflies. They are then placed in a separate ( monotypic ) superfamily " Hedyloidea ". It 's tempting to view the Hedylidae as the missing link between " butterflies " and " moths ".

More recent studies based on the comparison of homologous DNA sequences, can seem possible other positions, although the close relationship of the families of butterflies was confirmed with the Hedylidae in all of them. It would be possible, therefore, alternatively, a sister group relationship to the Hesperiidae

As a consequence of these results, many taxonomists today tend to unite all eligible families of the (old ) superfamily Papilionoidea including the Hedylidae and Hesperiidae in a broad, new superfamily Papilionoidea; this position is followed here. In English-speaking, they are already partly as " night butterflies living " ( "nocturnal butterflies" ) referred.

Swell

• M. J Scoble (1986 ): The structure and affinities of the Hedyloidea: a new concept of the butterflies. Bulletin of The British Museum (Natural History ) Entomology 53: 251-286. Full Text source