Coleophoridae
Encyclopedia
| name = Case-bearers
| image = Coleophoridae-01 (xndr).jpg
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = Adult of an unidentified case-bearer species
| regnum = Animal
ia
| phylum = Arthropod
a
| classis = Insect
a
| ordo = Lepidoptera
| superfamilia = Gelechioidea
| familia = Coleophoridae
| familia_authority = Hübner, [1825]
| diversity_link = #Selected genera
| diversity = Over 1,000 species
}}
Coleophoridae is a family
of small moth
s, belonging to the huge superfamily
Gelechioidea
. Collectively known as case-bearers, casebearing moths or case moths, this family is represented on all continents but the majority are found in temperate areas of the Northern Hemisphere
. They are most common in the Palearctic
, and rare in sub-Saharan Africa
, South America
and Australia
; consequently, they probably originated (like most or all other Gelechioidea families) in northern Eurasia
.
larva
e initially feed internally on the leaves
, flower
s or seed
s of their host plants. When they emerge to feed externally, they usually construct a protective silken case, discarded and built anew as they grow and molt
. The common names of the Coleophoridae refer to this habit.
The bagworm moth
s (Psychidae), which also belong to the primitive Ditrysia
(although to superfamily Tineoidea
, not Gelechioidea), build similar cases as larvae. But as opposed to these, the case-bearer females leave their cases to pupa
te and have normally-developed wings as adults, instead of being neotenous as female bagworms usually are.
have been placed in the "wastebin genus
" Coleophora
. There have been many proposals to split
smaller genera
from Coleophora. But few have been accepted, due to the uncertainties about which species are closest to the type species
of Coleophora – C. anatipennella
– and thus would remain in the genus.
As regards the family's circumscription versus other Gelechioidea, it is by now far less disputed than usual for this superfamily. The Blastobasidae
, Momphidae
(mompha moths), Pterolonchidae
and Symmocidae
have formerly been included in the Coleophoridae as subfamilies, but are more often considered separate families today. With the internal relationships of Coleophoridae genera (as far as they are widely accepted) and species essentially unresolved due to the classification problems mentioned above, no subfamilies or tribe
s are accepted in the family for the time being.
of case-bearers at least provisionally accepted by recent authors include:
| image = Coleophoridae-01 (xndr).jpg
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = Adult of an unidentified case-bearer species
| regnum = Animal
Animal
Animals are a major group of multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and...
ia
| phylum = Arthropod
Arthropod
An arthropod is an invertebrate animal having an exoskeleton , a segmented body, and jointed appendages. Arthropods are members of the phylum Arthropoda , and include the insects, arachnids, crustaceans, and others...
a
| classis = Insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
a
| ordo = Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
| superfamilia = Gelechioidea
Gelechioidea
| name = Curved-horn moths| image = Xylorycta assimilis.jpg| image_width = 240px| image_caption = Adult Xylorycta assimilis of the Xyloryctidae, photographed in Aranda Note prominent "horns" and long antennae| regnum = Animalia| phylum = Arthropoda...
| familia = Coleophoridae
| familia_authority = Hübner, [1825]
| diversity_link = #Selected genera
| diversity = Over 1,000 species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
}}
Coleophoridae is a family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of small moth
Moth
A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the order Lepidoptera. Moths form the majority of this order; there are thought to be 150,000 to 250,000 different species of moth , with thousands of species yet to be described...
s, belonging to the huge superfamily
Taxonomic rank
In biological classification, rank is the level in a taxonomic hierarchy. Examples of taxonomic ranks are species, genus, family, and class. Each rank subsumes under it a number of less general categories...
Gelechioidea
Gelechioidea
| name = Curved-horn moths| image = Xylorycta assimilis.jpg| image_width = 240px| image_caption = Adult Xylorycta assimilis of the Xyloryctidae, photographed in Aranda Note prominent "horns" and long antennae| regnum = Animalia| phylum = Arthropoda...
. Collectively known as case-bearers, casebearing moths or case moths, this family is represented on all continents but the majority are found in temperate areas of the Northern Hemisphere
Northern Hemisphere
The Northern Hemisphere is the half of a planet that is north of its equator—the word hemisphere literally means “half sphere”. It is also that half of the celestial sphere north of the celestial equator...
. They are most common in the Palearctic
Palearctic
The Palearctic or Palaearctic is one of the eight ecozones dividing the Earth's surface.Physically, the Palearctic is the largest ecozone...
, and rare in sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa as a geographical term refers to the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara. A political definition of Sub-Saharan Africa, instead, covers all African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
; consequently, they probably originated (like most or all other Gelechioidea families) in northern Eurasia
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
.
Description and ecology
These "micromoths" are generally of slender build, and like in many of their relatives the margins of the wings usually consist of a "fringe" of hairs. The tiny caterpillarCaterpillar
Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...
larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e initially feed internally on the leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
, flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s or seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
s of their host plants. When they emerge to feed externally, they usually construct a protective silken case, discarded and built anew as they grow and molt
Ecdysis
Ecdysis is the moulting of the cuticula in many invertebrates. This process of moulting is the defining feature of the clade Ecdysozoa, comprising the arthropods, nematodes, velvet worms, horsehair worms, rotifers, tardigrades and Cephalorhyncha...
. The common names of the Coleophoridae refer to this habit.
The bagworm moth
Bagworm moth
| name = Bagworm moths| image = Iphierga.jpg| image_caption = Adult of an undescribed Iphierga speciesfrom Aranda | image2 = Case moth02.jpg| image2_caption = "Bag" of unidentified species| regnum = Animalia| phylum = Arthropoda| classis = Insecta...
s (Psychidae), which also belong to the primitive Ditrysia
Ditrysia
The Ditrysia are a natural group or clade of insects in the Lepidopteran order containing both butterflies and moths. They are so named because the female has two distinct sexual openings: one for mating, and the other for laying eggs .About 98% of described species of Lepidoptera belong to Ditrysia...
(although to superfamily Tineoidea
Tineoidea
Tineoidea is the superfamily of moths that includes clothes moths, bagworms and relatives. There are six families usually included within it, Eriocottidae, Arrhenophanidae, Lypusidae, Acrolophidae, Tineidae and Psychidae, whose relationships are currently uncertain.The Lypusidae, for example, might...
, not Gelechioidea), build similar cases as larvae. But as opposed to these, the case-bearer females leave their cases to pupa
Pupa
A pupa is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation. The pupal stage is found only in holometabolous insects, those that undergo a complete metamorphosis, going through four life stages; embryo, larva, pupa and imago...
te and have normally-developed wings as adults, instead of being neotenous as female bagworms usually are.
Taxonomy and systematics
About 95% of the over 1,000 described speciesSpecies
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
have been placed in the "wastebin genus
Wastebin taxon
Wastebasket taxon is a term used in some taxonomic circles to refer to a taxon that has the sole purpose of classifying organisms that do not fit anywhere else. They are typically defined by their lack of one or more distinct character states or by their not belonging to one or more other taxa...
" Coleophora
Coleophora
Coleophora is a very large genus of moths of the family Coleophoridae. It contains some 1,350 described species. The genus is represented on all continents, but the majority are found in the Nearctic and Palaearctic regions...
. There have been many proposals to split
Lumpers and splitters
Lumping and splitting refers to a well-known problem in any discipline which has to place individual examples into rigorously defined categories. The lumper/splitter problem occurs when there is the need to create classifications and assign examples to them, for example schools of literature,...
smaller genera
Genera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
from Coleophora. But few have been accepted, due to the uncertainties about which species are closest to the type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
of Coleophora – C. anatipennella
Coleophora anatipennella
Coleophora anatipennella is a moth of the case-bearer family . It is the type species of its genus and, via that, of its family....
– and thus would remain in the genus.
As regards the family's circumscription versus other Gelechioidea, it is by now far less disputed than usual for this superfamily. The Blastobasidae
Blastobasidae
Blastobasidae is a family of moths in the superfamily Gelechioidea. Its species can be found almost anywhere in the world, though in some places they are not native but introduced by humans. In some arrangements, these moths are included in the case-bearer family as subfamily Blastobasinae...
, Momphidae
Momphidae
Momphidae is a family of moths. These tend to be rather small moths with a wingspan of up to 21 mm. The wings are held folded over the body at rest...
(mompha moths), Pterolonchidae
Pterolonchidae
Pterolonchidae is a small family of moths in the superfamily Gelechioidea.Genera of Pterolonchidae include:* Phthinostoma Meyrick, 1914* Pterolonche Zeller, 1847-References:...
and Symmocidae
Symmocidae
The Symmocidae are a family of moths in the superfamily Gelechioidea. These small moths are found mainly in the Palearctic and Africa.They have traditionally been considered close relatives of the Blastobasidae, where they were sometimes included as subfamily Symmocinae...
have formerly been included in the Coleophoridae as subfamilies, but are more often considered separate families today. With the internal relationships of Coleophoridae genera (as far as they are widely accepted) and species essentially unresolved due to the classification problems mentioned above, no subfamilies or tribe
Tribe (biology)
In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...
s are accepted in the family for the time being.
Genera
GeneraGenera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
of case-bearers at least provisionally accepted by recent authors include:
- AugasmaAugasmaAugasma is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Coleophoridae-Species:*Augasma aeratella *Augasma atraphaxidellum Kuznetzov, 1957*Augasma nitens Amsel, 1935...
- ColeophoraColeophoraColeophora is a very large genus of moths of the family Coleophoridae. It contains some 1,350 described species. The genus is represented on all continents, but the majority are found in the Nearctic and Palaearctic regions...
- CorythangelaCorythangelaCorythangela is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Batrachedridae. It was transferred to this family by Baldizonne in 1996 .-Species:*Corythangela galeata Meyrick, 1897...
- EnscepastraEnscepastraEnscepastra is a genus of moth, belonging to the Coleophoridae family.-Species:*Enscepastra lathraea *Enscepastra longirostris Meyrick, 1926*Enscepastra plagiopa Meyrick, 1920...
- GoniodomaGoniodomaGoniodoma is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Coleophoridae.-Species:*Goniodoma auroguttella Zeller, 1849*Goniodoma limoniella *Goniodoma millierella Ragonot, 1882*Goniodoma nemesi Capuse, 1970...
- IriothyrsaIriothyrsaIriothyrsa is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Coleophoridae containing only one species, Iriothyrsa melanogma, which is known from South Africa....
- IschnophanesIschnophanesIschnophanes is a genus of moths of the family Coleophoridae.-Species:*Ischnophanes aquilina Baldizzone & van der Wolf, 2003*Ischnophanes baldizzonella Vives, 1983*Ischnophanes bifurcata Baldizzone, 1994...
- IschnopsisIschnopsisIschnopsis is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Coleophoridae containing only one species, Ischnopsis angustella, which is known from South Africa....
- MetriotesMetriotesMetriotes is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Coleophoridae-Species:*Metriotes jaeckhi Baldizzone, 1985*Metriotes lutarea...
- NasamonicaNasamonicaNasamonica is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Coleophoridae or Momphidae. It contains only one species, Nasamonica oxymorpha, which is found in Chad....
- PoroticaPoroticaPorotica is a genus of moth, belonging to the family Coleophoridae containing only one species, Porotica astragalis, which is known from South Africa....