Prehistoric Lepidoptera are both butterflies

Butterfly

A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...

 and 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 that lived before recorded history

History

History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...

. The fossil record for Lepidoptera is lacking in comparison to other winged species, and tending not to be as common as some other insects in the habitats that are most conducive to fossilization, such as lakes and ponds, and their juvenile stage has only the head capsule as a hard part that might be preserved. The location and abundance of the most common moth species are indicative that mass migrations of moths occurred over the Palaeogene North Sea

North Sea

In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...

, which is why there is a serious lack of moth fossils. Yet there are fossils, some preserved in amber and some in very fine sediments. Leaf mines

Leaf miner

Leaf miner is a term used to describe the larvae of many different species of insect which live in and eat the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths , sawflies and flies , though some beetles and wasps also exhibit this behavior.Like Woodboring beetles, leaf...

 are also seen in fossil leaves, although the interpretation of them is tricky.

Putative fossil stem group representatives of Amphiesmenoptera (the clade comprising Trichoptera and Lepidoptera) are known from the Triassic

Triassic

The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...

. The earliest known fossil lepidopteran are three wings of Archaeolepis mane

Archaeolepis

Archaeolepis mane is the earliest known Lepidopteran fossil. It dates from the Lower Jurassic and according to Grimaldi & Engel a recent re-examination of the specimen has given additional support to its ordinal placement...

 from the Jurassic

Jurassic

The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to  Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...

, about , found in Dorset

Dorset

Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...

, UK. The fossil belongs to a small primitive moth-like species, and its wings are showing scales with parallel grooves under a scanning electron microscope and a characteristic wing venation pattern shared with Trichoptera

Trichoptera

The caddisflies are an order, Trichoptera, of insects with approximately 12,000 described species. Also called sedge-flies or rail-flies, they are small moth-like insects having two pairs of hairy membranous wings...

 (Caddisflies). Only two more sets of Jurassic lepidopteran fossils have been found, as well as 13 sets from the Cretaceous

Cretaceous

The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...

, which all belong to primitive moth-like families. Many more fossils are found from the Tertiary, and particularly the Eocene Baltic amber

Baltic amber

The Baltic region is home to the largest known deposit of amber, called Baltic amber or succinite, with about 80% of the world's known amber found there. It dates from 44 million years ago...

. The oldest genuine butterflies of the superfamily Papilionoidea have been found in the Paleocene

Paleocene

The Paleocene or Palaeocene, the "early recent", is a geologic epoch that lasted from about . It is the first epoch of the Palaeogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era...

 MoClay

MoClay

The Moclay strata are formally designated as the Fur Formation.It is a diatomitic sediment of Lower Eocene Epoch, c. 56-54,5 Ma) age which crops out in the Limfjord region of Denmark from Silstrup via Mors and Fur to Ertebølle, and can be seen in many cliffs and quarries in the area...

 or Fur Formation

Fur Formation

Essentially the Fur Formation is defined as a clayey diatomite with a lage number of volcanic ash layers.The Fur Formation is a marine geological formation of Ypresian age which crops out in the Limfjord region of Denmark from Silstrup via Mors and Fur to Ertebølle, and can be seen in many cliffs...

 of Denmark. The best preserved fossil lepidopteran is considered to be the Eocene

Eocene

The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...

 Prodryas persephone

Prodryas

Prodryas persephone is an extinct butterfly, known from a single specimen from Eocene rocks. It was the first fossil butterfly to be found in North America, and is unusually well preserved...

 from the Florissant Fossil Beds

Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument

Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument is a United States National Monument in Teller County, Colorado, that is noted for its fossils. It is located in a mountain valley just west of Pikes Peak and holds spectacular remnants of prehistoric life...

.

Phylogeny

Lepidoptera and Trichoptera

Trichoptera

The caddisflies are an order, Trichoptera, of insects with approximately 12,000 described species. Also called sedge-flies or rail-flies, they are small moth-like insects having two pairs of hairy membranous wings...

 (caddisflies) are more closely related than any other taxa, sharing many similarities that are lacking in other insect orders; for example the females of both orders are heterogametic

ZW sex-determination system

The ZW sex-determination system is a system that determines the sex of offspring in birds, some fish and crustaceans such as the giant river prawn, some insects , and some reptiles, including Komodo dragons...

, meaning they have two different sex chromosomes, whereas in most species the males are heterogametic and the females have two identical sex chromosomes. The adults in both orders display a particular wing venation pattern on their forewings. The larvae of both orders have mouth structures and gland with which they make and manipulate silk

Silk

Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...

. Willi Hennig

Willi Hennig

Emil Hans Willi Hennig was a German biologist who is considered the founder of phylogenetic systematics, also known as cladistics. With his works on evolution and systematics he revolutionised the view of the natural order of beings...

 grouped the two sister orders into the Amphiesmenoptera

Amphiesmenoptera

Amphiesmenoptera is an insect superorder, established by Willi Hennig in his revision of insect taxonomy for two sister orders: Lepidoptera and Trichoptera ....

 superorder. This group probably evolved in the Jurassic, having split from the now extinct order Necrotaulidae.

Micropterigidae

Micropterigidae

Micropterigoidea is the superfamily of "mandibulate archaic moths", all placed in the single family Micropterigidae, containing currently about 20 living genera. They are considered the most primitive extant lineage of Lepidoptera ....

, Agathiphagidae and Heterobathmiidae are the oldest and most basal lineages of Lepidoptera. The adults of these families do not have the curled tongue or proboscis

Proboscis

A proboscis is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In simpler terms, a proboscis is the straw-like mouth found in several varieties of species.-Etymology:...

, that are found in most members order, but instead have chewing mandibles adapted for a special diet. Micropterigidae larvae feed on 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....

, fungi, or liverworts

Marchantiophyta

The Marchantiophyta are a division of bryophyte plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like other bryophytes, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of genetic information....

 (much like the Trichoptera

Trichoptera

The caddisflies are an order, Trichoptera, of insects with approximately 12,000 described species. Also called sedge-flies or rail-flies, they are small moth-like insects having two pairs of hairy membranous wings...

). Adult Micropterigidae chew the pollen or spores of ferns. In the Agathiphagidae, larvae live inside kauri pines and feed on seeds. In Heterobathmiidae the larvae feed on the leaves of Nothofagus

Nothofagus

Nothofagus, also known as the southern beeches, is a genus of 35 species of trees and shrubs native to the temperate oceanic to tropical Southern Hemisphere in southern South America and Australasia...

, the southern beech tree. These families also have mandibles in the pupal stage, which help the pupa emerge from the seed or cocoon after metamorphosis

Metamorphosis

Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops after birth or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and differentiation...

.

The Eriocraniidae have a short coiled proboscis in the adult stage, and though they retain their pupal mandibles with which they escaped the cocoon, their mandibles are non-functional thereafter. Most of these non-ditrysian families, are primarily leaf miner

Leaf miner

Leaf miner is a term used to describe the larvae of many different species of insect which live in and eat the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf-mining insects are moths , sawflies and flies , though some beetles and wasps also exhibit this behavior.Like Woodboring beetles, leaf...

s in the larval stage. In addition to the proboscis, there is a change in the scales among these basal lineages, with later lineages showing more complex perforated scales.

With the evolution of the 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...

 in the mid-Cretaceous, there was a major reproductive change. The Ditrysia, which comprise 98% of the Lepidoptera, have two separate openings for reproduction in the females (as well as a third opening for excretion), one for mating, and one for laying eggs. The two are linked internally by a seminal duct. (In more basal lineages there is one cloaca

Cloaca

In zoological anatomy, a cloaca is the posterior opening that serves as the only such opening for the intestinal, reproductive, and urinary tracts of certain animal species...

, or later, two openings and an external sperm canal.) Of the early lineages of Ditrysia, Gracillarioidea

Gracillarioidea

Gracillarioidea is a large superfamily containing four families of insects in the order Lepidoptera. These generally small moths are miners in plant tissue as caterpillars. There are about 113 described genera distributed worldwide, the most commonly encountered of which are leaf-miners in the...

 and 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...

 are mostly leaf miners, but more recent lineages feed externally. In the 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...

, most species feed on plant and animal detritus and fungi, and build shelters in the larval stage.

The Yponomeutoidea

Yponomeutoidea

Yponomeutoidea is a superfamily of Ermine moths and relatives.-Familiae:*Acrolepiidae*Bedelliidae*Glyphipterigidae*Heliodinidae*Lyonetiidae*Plutellidae*Yponomeutidae*Ypsolophidae- Etymology :...

 is the first group to have significant numbers of species whose larvae feed on herbaceous plants, as opposed to woody plants. They evolved about the time that flowering plants underwent an expansive adaptive radiation

Adaptive radiation

In evolutionary biology, adaptive radiation is the evolution of ecological and phenotypic diversity within a rapidly multiplying lineage. Starting with a recent single ancestor, this process results in the speciation and phenotypic adaptation of an array of species exhibiting different...

 in the mid-Cretaceous

Cretaceous

The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...

, and the Gelechioidea that evolved at this time also have great diversity. Whether the processes involved co-evolution

Co-evolution

In biology, coevolution is "the change of a biological object triggered by the change of a related object." Coevolution can occur at many biological levels: it can be as microscopic as correlated mutations between amino acids in a protein, or as macroscopic as covarying traits between different...

 or sequential evolution, the diversity of the Lepidoptera and the angiosperms increased together.

In the so-called "Macrolepidoptera

Macrolepidoptera

Macrolepidoptera is a group within the insect order Lepidoptera. Traditionally used for the larger butterflies and moths as opposed to the "Microlepidoptera", this group is unnatural. However, it seems that by moving some taxa about, a monophyletic Macrolepidoptera can be easily achieved...

", which constitutes about 60% of lepidopteran species, there was a general increase in size, better flying ability (via changes in wing shape and linkage of the forewings and hindwings), reduction in the adult mandibles, and a change in the arrangement of the crochets (hooks) on the larval prolegs, perhaps to improve the grip on the host plant. Many also have tympanal organ

Tympanal organ

A tympanal organ is a hearing organ in insects, consisting of a membrane stretched across a frame backed by an air sac and associated sensory neurons...

s, that allow them to hear. These organs evolved eight times, at least, because they occur on different body parts and have structural differences.
The main lineages in the Macrolepidoptera are the Noctuoidea

Noctuoidea

Noctuoidea is the superfamily of noctuid or "owlet" moths, and has the largest number of species described for any Lepidopteran superfamily. Its classification has not yet reached a satisfactory or stable state. The most recent classifications include only four families in the superfamily;...

, Bombycoidea

Bombycoidea

Bombycoidea is a superfamily of moths. It contains the silk moths, emperor moths, sphinx moths and relatives. The Lasiocampoidea are close relatives and sometimes merged in the present group. Their larvae exhibit horns.-Sources:...

, Lasiocampidae

Lasiocampidae

The Lasiocampidae family of moths are also known as eggars, snout moths or lappet moths. There are over 2000 species worldwide, and probably not all have been named or studied....

, Mimallonoidea

Mimallonoidea

Mimallonoidea is the superfamily of sack bearer moths, containing the single family Mimallonidae.-Genera:*Aceclostria*Adalgisa*Aleyda*Alheita*Bedosia*Biterolfa*Cicinnus*Druentica*Eadmuna*Euphaneta...

, Geometroidea

Geometroidea

Geometroidea is the superfamily of geometrid moths in the Lepidoptera. It includes the families Geometridae, Uraniidae, and Sematuridae...

 and Rhopalocera. Bombycoidea plus Lasiocampidae plus Mimallonoidea may be a monophyletic group. The Rhopalocera, comprising the Papilionoidea

Papilionoidea

The superfamily Papilionoidea contains all the butterflies except for the skippers, which are classified in superfamily Hesperioidea, and the moth-like Hedyloidea....

 (butterflies), Hesperioidea (skippers), and the Hedyloidea (moth-butterflies), are the most recently evolved. There is quite a good fossil record for this group, with the oldest skipper dating from .

Recorded species

This is a list of all recorded fossil Lepidoptera species.

Taxa marked with † are extinct

Family †Eocoronidae

Eocoronidae

Eocoronidae is an extinct family of insects from the Carnian age of the Triassic period. It was established in 1981 by the Australian entomologist Norman Tindale. At present, it contains only one species and genus: Eocorona iani....

 Tindale, 1981

• †Eocorona
  Eocorona
  Eocorona is an extinct genus of amphiesmenopteran from the Middle Triassic of Australia. It contains only one species, Eocorona iani, and is the type genus of the family Eocoronidae.-Discovery:...
  
   Tindale, 1980
  • †Eocorona iani Tindale, 1980 (Queensland, Mid-Triassic)

Family †Palaeontinidae

Palaeontinidae

Palaeontinidae, commonly known as giant cicadas, is an extinct family of cicadomorphs. They existed during the Mesozoic era of Europe, Asia, and South America. The family contains around 30 to 40 genera and around a hundred species.-Discovery:...

 Handlirsch 1906 (?)

• †Cyllonium
  Cyllonium
  Cyllonium are a genus of extinct insects. It contains two species.-Discovery:Both species of Cyllonium were first described by the English entomologist John Obadiah Westwood...
  
   Westwood, 1854
  • †Cyllonium boidusvalianum Westwood, 1854
  • †Cyllonium hewitsonianum Westwood, 1854

Family †Permochoristidae Tillyard, 1917 (?)

• †Eoses Tindale, 1945
  • †Eoses triassica Tindale 1945, disputed to be a synonym of †Mesochorista proavita
    Mesochorista proavita
    Mesochorista proavita is an extinct species of scorpionfly from the Triassic period of Queensland, Australia.-Discovery:Specimens of Mesochorista proavita were first described by the English-Australian entomologist Robert John Tillyard in 1916. The fossils were recovered from the Denmark Hill...
    
     Tillyard 1916 in the Mecoptera
    Mecoptera
    Mecoptera are an order of insects with about 550 species in nine families worldwide. Mecoptera are sometimes called scorpionflies after their largest family, Panorpidae, in which the males have enlarged genitals that look similar to the stinger of a scorpion...
    
    

Superfamily unassigned

• †Bombycites
  Bombycites
  Bombycites is an extinct genus of butterfly from the Upper Miocene of Oeningen, Croatia. It contains only one species, Bombycites oeningensis, described from a fossil pupa by the Swiss geologist and naturalist Oswald Heer. Its family and superfamily placement is uncertain....
  
   Heer, 1849
  • †Bombycites oeningensis Heer, 1849 (Croatia, Oeningen, described from a pupa)
• †Karataunia
  Karataunia
  Karataunia is an extinct genus of butterfly from the Upper Jurassic of Karatau, Kazakhstan. It contains only one species, Karataunia lapidaria. Its family and superfamily placement is uncertain....
  
   Kozlov, 1989
  • †Karataunia lapidaria Kozlov, 1989 (Kazakhstan, Upper Jurassic)
• †Phylledestes
  Phylledestes
  Phylledestes is an extinct genus of butterfly from the Miocene shales of Florissant, Colorado. It contains only one species, Phylledestes vorax, described from a fossil larva...
  
   Cockerell, 1907
  • †Phylledestes vorax Cockerell, 1907 (Colorado, Florissant – in the Miocene shales, described from a larva)
• †Protolepis
  Protolepis
  Protolepis is an extinct genus of butterfly from the Upper Jurassic of Karatau, Kazakhstan. It contains only one species, Protolepis cuprealata. Its family and superfamily placement is uncertain....
  
   Kozlov, 1989
  • †Protolepis cuprealata Kozlov, 1989 (Kazakhstan, Upper Jurassic)
• †Thermojana Yang & Chen, 1995
  • †Thermojana sinica Yang & Chen, 1995 (China) (originally placed in Eupterotidae)

Family Hesperiidae

• †Pamphilites
  Pamphilites
  Pamphilites is an extinct genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae. It contains only one fossil species, Pamphilites abdita, recovered from the Tertiary of Aix-en-Provence, France.-Discovery:...
  
   Scudder, 1875
  • †Pamphilites abdita Scudder, 1875 (Aix-en-Provence, Oligocene)
• †Thanatites Scudder, 1875
  • †Thanatites vetula (Heyden, 1859) (Western Germany, Tertiary) (originally in Nymphalidae)

Family Lycaenidae

Lycaenidae

The Lycaenidae are the second-largest family of butterflies, with about 6000 species worldwide, whose members are also called gossamer-winged butterflies...

• †Aquisextana Theobald, 1937
  • †Aquisextana irenaei Theobald, 1937 (France, Early Oligocene)
• †Lithodryas
  Lithodryas
  Lithodryas is a prehistoric genus of butterfly in the family Lycaenidae. It was introduced as a replacement for Samuel Hubbard Scudder's genus Lithopsyche which is invalid as a homonym. The type species was found in Tertiary deposits at Florissant....
  
   Cockerell, 1909
  • †Lithodryas styx (Scudder, 1889) (originally in Lithopsyche)
  • †Lithodryas antique (Butler, 1889) (originally in Lithopsyche)

Family Nymphalidae

Nymphalidae

The Nymphalidae is a family of about 5,000 species of butterflies which are distributed throughout most of the world. These are usually medium sized to large butterflies. Most species have a reduced pair of forelegs and many hold their colourful wings flat when resting. They are also called...

• †Apanthesis Scudder, 1889
  • †Apanthesis leuce Scudder, 1889 (Colorado, Florissant)
• †Barbarothea Scudder, 1892
  • †Barbarothea florissanti Scudder, 1892 (Colorado, Florissant)
• Doxocopa
  Doxocopa
  Doxocopa is a genus of neotropical butterflies in the family Nymphalidae, subfamily Apaturinae.-External links:* at funit.fi...
  
   Hübner, 1819
  • †Doxocopa wilmattae (Cockerell, 1907) (Colorado, Florissant) (originally in Chlorippe)
• Hestina
  Hestina
  Hestina is a genus of butterflies in the family Nymphalidae.-External links:* at funet.fi...
  
   Westwood, 1850
  • Hestina japonica (C. et R. Felder)
• †Jupitellia Carpenter, 1985
  • †Jupitellia charon (Scudder, 1889) (originally in Jupiteria)
• †Lethites Scudder, 1875
  • †Lethites reynesii (Scudder, 1872)
• Undescribed Limenitis
  Limenitis
  Limenitis is a genus of brush-footed butterflies, commonly called the Admirals. The Sister butterflies and Commander butterflies are sometimes included here....
  
   species
• †Mylothrites Scudder, 1875
  • †Mylothrites pluto (Heer, 1850) (Europe, Oligocene) (originally in Vanessa)
• †Neorinella Martins, Kucera-Santos, Vieira & Fr, 1993
  • †Neorinella garciae Martines-Neto, 1993
• †Neorinopis Butler, 1873
  • †Neorinopis sepulta (Boisduval, 1840) (France, Early Oligocene)
• †Nymphalites Scudder, 1889
  • †Nymphalites obscurum Scudder, 1889 (Colorado, Florissant)
  • †Nymphalites scudderi Beutenmller and Cockerell, 1908
  • †Nymphalites zeuneri Jarembowski, 1980
• †Prodryas
  Prodryas
  Prodryas persephone is an extinct butterfly, known from a single specimen from Eocene rocks. It was the first fossil butterfly to be found in North America, and is unusually well preserved...
  
   Scudder, 1878
  • †Prodryas persephone Scudder, 1878
• †Prolibythea Scudder, 1889
  • †Prolibythea vagabunda Scudder, 1889 (Colorado, Florissant)
• Vanessa
  Vanessa (butterfly)
  Vanessa is a genus of brush-footed butterflies. Many people are familiar with it, as it has a near-global distribution and includes conspicuous species such as the red admirals , the Kamehameha, and the painted ladies of subgenus Cynthia: Painted Lady, American Painted Lady, Australian Painted...
  
   Fabricius, 1807
  • †Vanessa amerindica Miller and Brown, 1989 (Colorado, Florissant)

Family Papilionidae

• †Doritites Rebel, 1898
  • †Doritites bosniackii
    Doritites bosniackii
    Doritites bosniackii is a fossil swallowtail butterfly in the subfamily Parnassiinae. The genus and its sole species was described from the Miocene of Tuscany, Italy.-References:...
    
     Rebel, 1898 (Italy, Tuscany, Miocene) (sometimes in Luehdorfia)
• †Praepapilio
  Praepapilio
  Praepapilio is an extinct genus of swallowtail butterfly from the middle Eocene deposits of Colorado, United States. It belongs to the extremely few papilionid fossils ever discovered and is now considered to represent the fossil subfamily Praepapilioninae. Two species were described, each from a...
  
   Durden & Rose, 1978
  • †Praepapilio colorado Durden & Rose, 1978
  • †Praepapilio gracilis Durden & Rose 1978
• †Thaites
  Thaites
  Thaites ruminiana, is the only species of the extinct genus, Thaites. It was described by Samuel Hubbard Scudder in 1875, after discovery in Aix-en-Provence, Southern France. It is a fossil swallowtail butterfly.-References:...
  
   Scudder, 1875
  • †Thaites ruminianus Scudder, 1875 (France, Aix-en-Provence, Oligocene)

Family Pieridae

Pieridae

The Pieridae are a large family of butterflies with about 76 genera containing approximately 1,100 species, mostly from tropical Africa and Asia. Most pierid butterflies are white, yellow or orange in coloration, often with black spots...

• †Coliates Scudder, 1875
  • †Coliates proserpina Scudder, 1875
• †Oligodonta Brown, 1976
  • †Oligodonta florissantensis Brown, 1976 (Colorado, Oligocene)
• Pontia
  Pontia
  Pontia, commonly called Whites, is a genus of pierid butterflies found worldwide. For other Whites see genus Pieris.-Species:Listed alphabetically.* Pontia beckerii – Becker's White, Great Basin White, or Sagebrush White...
  
   Fabricius, 1807
  • †Pontia freyeri (Heer, 1849)
• †Stolopsyche Scudder, 1889
  • †Stolopsyche libytheoides Scudder, 1889 (Colorado, Tertiary)

Family Riodinidae

Riodinidae

The Riodinidae are a family of butterflies. The common name "metalmarks" refers to the small metallic-looking spots commonly found on their wings. There are approximately 1,000 species of metalmark butterflies in the world...

• †Riodinella Durden & Rose, 1978
  • †Riodinella nympha Durden & Rose, 1978 (Colorado, Middle Eocene)
• Voltinia
  Voltinia (butterfly)
  Voltinia is a genus of metalmark butterflies.-Species:*†Voltinia dramba Hall, Robbins & Harvey 2004*Voltinia radiata *Voltinia theata Stichel, 1910...
  
   Stichel, 1910
  • †Voltinia dramba
    Voltinia dramba
    Voltinia dramba is a fossil metalmark butterfly, found in pieces of amber in the Dominican Republic on the island of Hispaniola in 2004. The butterfly, belonging to the extant genus Voltinia, is the first species to be taxonomically described from amber and the first true fossil of an adult riodinid...
    
     Hall, Robbins & Harvey 2004

Family Saturniidae

Saturniidae

The Saturniidae, commonly known as saturniids, are among the largest and most spectacular of the moths. They form a family of Lepidoptera, with an estimated 1,300 to 1,500 described species worldwide...

• Aglia Ochsenheimer, 1810
  • Aglia tau
    Aglia tau
    The Tau Emperor is a moth of the family Saturniidae. It is found in Europe.The wingspan is 60-84 mm. The moth flies in one generation from March to July depending on the location....
    
     (Linnaeus, 1758)
• Rothschildia
  Rothschildia
  Rothschildia is a genus of moths in the Saturniidae family.Species are found in North America and South America from Canada to Argentina.-Species:* Rothschildia affinis * Rothschildia amacurensis Lemaire, 1972...
  
   Grote, 1896
  • †Rothschildia fossilis Cockerell, 1914 (originally in Attacus)

Family Sphingidae

Sphingidae

Sphingidae is a family of moths , commonly known as hawk moths, sphinx moths and hornworms, that includes about 1,200 species . It is best represented in the tropics but there are species in every region . They are moderate to large in size and are distinguished among moths for their rapid,...

• †Mioclanis
  Mioclanis
  Mioclanis is an extinct genus of moths in the Sphingidae family, containing one speciesMioclanis shanwangiana which is known from Shandong in China. It is dated to the Miocene....
  
   Zhang, Sun & Zhang, 1994
  • †Mioclanis shanwangiana Zhang, Sun & Zhang, 1994
• †Sphingidites
  Sphingidites
  Sphingidites is an extinct genus of moths in the Sphingidae family, containg one species, Sphingidites weidneri. It is a compression fossil of a prepupal larva. The fossil was found in Germany and was dated to the Pliocene....
  
   Kernbach, 1967
  • †Sphingidites weidneri Kernbach, 1967

Family Copromorphidae

Copromorphidae

Copromorphidae, the "tropical fruitworm moths" is a family of insects in the lepidopteran order. These moths have broad, rounded forewings, and well-camouflaged scale patterns. Unlike Carposinidae the mouthparts include "labial palps" with the second rather than third segment the longest...

• Copromorpha Meyrick, 1886
  • †Copromorpha fossilis Jarzembowski, 1980

Family Cossidae

Cossidae

Cossidae, the cossid millers or carpenter millers, make up a family of mostly large miller moths. Ths family contains over 110 genera with almost 700 known species, and many more species await description...

• †Adelopsyche Cockerell, 1926
  • †Adelopsyche frustrans Cockerell, 1926 (Colorado, Florissant)
• †Gurnetia Cockerell, 1921
  • †Gurnetia durranti Cockerell, 1921 (Isle of Wight)

Family †Eolepidopterigidae

• †Daiopterix
  Daiopterix
  Daiopterix is an extinct genus of moths within the family Eolepidopterigidae, containing two species. Daiopterix rasnitsyni is known from Kazakstan. The fossil remains are dated to the Jurassic....
  
   Skalski, 1984
  • †Daiopterix rasnitsyni Skalski, 1984
  • †Daiopterix olgae Kozlov, 1989
• †Eolepidopterix
  Eolepidopterix
  Eolepidopterix is an extinct genus of moths within the family Eolepidopterigidae, containing one species, Eolepidopterix jurassica, which is known from Russia. The fossil remains are dated to the Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous....
  
   Rasnitsyn, 1983
  • Eolepidopterix jurassica Rasnitsyn, 1983
• Gracilepteryx
  Gracilepteryx
  Gracilepteryx is an extinct genus of moths within the family Eolepidopterigidae, containing one species, Gracilepteryx pulchra, which is known from the Crato Formation in Brazil....
  
   Martins-Neto and Vulcano, 1989
  • †Gracilepteryx pulchra Martins-Neto and Vulcano, 1989
• †Psamateia
  Psamateia
  Psamateia is an extinct genus of moths within the family Eolepidopterigidae, containing one species, Psamateia calipsa, which is known from the Crato Formation in Brazil....
  
   Martins-Neto, 2002
  • †Psamateia calipsa Martins-Neto, 2002
• †Undopterix
  Undopterix
  Undopterix is an extinct genus of moths within the family Eolepidopterigidae, containing two species. Undopterix sukatshevae is known from Russia...
  
   Skalski, 1979 (sometimes in Undopterigidae Kozlov, 1988)
  • †Undopterix sukatshevae Skalski, 1979
  • †Undopterix cariensis Martins-Neto and Vulcano, 1989
• †Xena
  Xena
  Xena is a fictional character from Robert Tapert's Xena: Warrior Princess franchise. She first appeared in the 1995–1999 television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, before going on to appear in Xena: Warrior Princess TV show and subsequent comic book of the same name...
  
   Martins-Neto, 1999
  • †Xena nana Martins-Neto, 1999

Family Autostichidae

• †Symmocites Kusnezov
  Nikolai Jakovlevice Kusnezov
  Nikolai Jakovlevice Kusnezov, also spelled Kusnetzov, Kusnetsov and Kuznetsov was a Russian entomologist, paleoentomologist and physiologist....
  
  , 1941
  • †Symmocites rohdendorfi Kusnezov, 1941

Family Elachistidae

Elachistidae

| image = Elachista rufocinerea 2.jpg| image_width = 240px| image_caption = Adult Elachista rufocinerea,demonstrating its tiny size versus an aphid and a spider mite | regnum = Animalia| phylum = Arthropoda| classis = Insecta...

• †Elachistites Kozlov, 1987
  • †Elachistites durranti Kozlov, 1987 (Baltic region, Eocene)

Family Ethmiidae

Ethmiidae

Ethmiidae is a family of small moths in the superfamily Gelechioidea. It is sometimes included in the Elachistidae or the Oecophoridae as a subfamily Ethmiinae.-Genera:...

• Ethmia
  Ethmia
  Ethmia is a large genus of small moths. It is the type genus of the gelechioid family Ethmiidae, which is sometimes included in Elachistidae or Oecophoridae as subfamily.-References:...
  
   Hübner, [1819]
  • †Ethmia mortuella Scudder, 1890 (Colorado, Florissant)

Family Oecophoridae

Oecophoridae

Oecophoridae is a family of small moths in the superfamily Gelechioidea. The phylogeny and systematics of gelechoid moths are still not fully resolved, and the circumscription of the Oecophoridae is strongly affected by this....

• †Borkhausenites Rebel, 1934
  • †Borkhausenites angustipenella Rebel, 1935
  • †Borkhausenites bachofeni Rebel, 1934
  • †Borkhausenites crassella Rebel, 1935
  • †Borkhausenites implicatella Rebel, 1935
  • †Borkhausenites incolumella Rebel, 1934
  • †Borkhausenites ingentella Rebel, 1935
  • †Borkhausenites vulneratella Rebel, 1935
• †Depressarites Rebel, 1936
  • †Depressarites blastuliferella Rebel, 1935
  • †Depressarites levipalpella Rebel, 1935
• †Epiborkhausenites
  Epiborkhausenites
  Epiborkhausenites is an extinct genus of moth in the concealer moth family Oecophoridae and containing a single species Epiborkhausenites obscurotrimaculatus...
  
   Skalski, 1973 (Bartonian
  Bartonian
  The Bartonian is, in the ICS's geological timescale, a stage or age in the middle Eocene epoch or series. The Bartonian age spans the time between and . It is preceded by the Lutetian and is followed by the Priabonian age.-Stratigraphic definition:...
  
  , Baltic amber
  Baltic amber
  The Baltic region is home to the largest known deposit of amber, called Baltic amber or succinite, with about 80% of the world's known amber found there. It dates from 44 million years ago...
  
  , Lithuania)
  • †Epiborkhausenites obscurotrimaculatus Skalski, 1973
• †Glesseumeyrickia Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Glesseumeyrickia henrikseni Kusnezov, 1941
• †Hexerites Cockerell, 1933 (originally in Thyrididae)
  • †Hexerites primalis Cockerell, 1933
• †Microsymmocites Skalski, 1977
  • †Microsymmocites Skalski, 1977
• †Neoborkhausenites Skalski, 1977
  • †Neoborkhausenites incertella (Rebel, 1935) (originally in Borkhausenites)
• †Palaeodepressaria Skalski, 1979
  • †Palaeodepressaria hannemanni Skalski, 1979
  • †Paraborkhausenites Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Paraborkhausenites innominatus Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Paraborkhausenites vicinella (Rebel, 1935) (originally in Borkhausenites)

Family 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...

• †Oegoconiites Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Oegoconiites borisjaki Kusnezov, 1941 (Baltic region, Oligocene Amber)

Family Geometridae

• †Geometridites
  Geometridites
  Geometridites is a genus of moth in the family Geometridae.-References:*...
  
   Clark et al., 1971
  • †Geometridites jordani Kernbach, 1967 (Willershausen, Pliocene)
  • †Geometridites larentiiformis Jarzembowski, 1980
  • †Geometridites repens Kernbach, 1967
• Hydriomena
  Hydriomena
  Hydriomena is a genus of moth in the family Geometridae.-Species:* Hydriomena albifasciata * Hydriomena albimontanata McDunnough, 1939* Hydriomena arizonata Barnes & McDunnough, 1917* Hydriomena barnesata Swett, 1909...
  
   Hübner, (1825)
  • †Hydriomena? protrita
    Hydriomena? protrita
    Hydriomena? protrita is an extinct species of moth in the family Geometridae, and possibly in the modern genus Hydriomena. The species is known from late Eocene, Priabonian stage, lake deposits near the small community of Florissant in Teller County, Colorado, USA.-History and...
    
     Cockerell, 1922 (Priabonian
    Priabonian
    The Priabonian is, in the ICS's geologic timescale, the latest age or the upper stage of the Eocene epoch or series. It spans the time between and...
    
    , Florissant Formation, Colorado)

Family Bucculatricidae

Bucculatricidae

Bucculatricidae or is a family of moths. This small family has representatives in all parts of the world. Some authors place the group as a subfamily of the family Lyonetiidae....

• Bucculatrix Zeller, 1839
  • †Bucculatrix platani Kozlov, 1988 (Kazakhstan, Late Cretaceous)

Family Gracillariidae

Gracillariidae

Gracillariidae is an important family of insects in the order Lepidoptera and the principal family of leaf miners that includes several economic, horticultural or recently invasive pest species such as the horse-chestnut leaf miner, Cameraria ohridella....

• †Gracillariites
  Gracillariites
  Gracillariites is an extinct genus of moth in the Gracillariidae family, which existed in what is now Lithuania during the Eocene period. It was described by Kozlov in 1987, and the type species is Gracillariites lithuanicus. It also contains the species Gracillariites mixtus....
  
   Kozlov, 1987
  • †Gracillariites lithuanicus Kozlov, 1987
  • †Gracillariites mixtus Kozlov, 1987
• Two undescribed Phyllocnistis
  Phyllocnistis
  Phyllocnistis is a genus of moths in the family Gracillariidae.-Adult:Adults of the genus Phyllocnistis are very small moths with wing spans generally not exceeding 5 mm. Both fore- and hindwings are lanceolate and predominantly white. The forewings are marked with yellow to orange, longitudinal...
  
   species
• One undescribed Lithocolletis species

Family Hepialidae

Hepialidae

The Hepialidae is a family of insects in the lepidopteran order. Moths of this family are often referred to as swift moths or ghost moths.-Taxonomy and systematics:...

• †Prohepialus Piton, 1940
  • †Prohepialus incertus Piton, 1940 (Menat, France, Tertiary)

Family Adelidae

Adelidae

| name = Fairy longhorn moths| image=Unidentified animal 007 .jpg| image_width = 240px| image_caption= Adult of an unidentified fairy longhorn mothfrom Chemnitz | regnum = Animalia| phylum = Arthropoda...

• Adela
  Adela (moth)
  Adela is a genus of the fairy longhorn moth family . Among these, it belongs to subfamily Adelinae.-Species:* Adela albicinctella Mann, 1852* Adela australis * Adela caeruleella Walker, 1863...
  
   Latreille, 1796
  • †Adela kuznetzovi Kozlov, 1987
  • †Adela similis Kozlov, 1987
• †Adelites Rebel 1934
  • †Adelites electrella Rebel, 1934
  • †Adelites purpurascens Rebel, 1935
  • †Adelites serraticornella Rebel, 1935
  • An undescribed †Adelites species

Family Incurvariidae

Incurvariidae

Incurvariidae is a family of small primitive monotrysian moths in the order Lepidoptera. There are twelve genera recognised . Many species are leaf miners and much is known of their hostplants, excluding Paraclemensia acerifoliella . The most familiar species in Europe are perhaps Incurvaria...

• †Incurvarites Rebel, 1934
  • †Incurvarites alienella Rebel, 1934
• †Prophalonia Rebel, 1936 (originally placed in Tortricidae)
  • †Prophalonia gigas Rebel, 1935
  • †Prophalonia scutitarsella Rebel, 1935

Family Micropterigidae

Micropterigidae

Micropterigoidea is the superfamily of "mandibulate archaic moths", all placed in the single family Micropterigidae, containing currently about 20 living genera. They are considered the most primitive extant lineage of Lepidoptera ....

• †Auliepterix
  Auliepterix
  Auliepterix is an extinct genus of small primitive metallic moths within the family Micropterigidae. The genus is represented by two species, Auliepterix mirabilis in the Karabastau Svita of the Upper Jurassic of Kazakhstan and Auliepterix minima in Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous rocks near...
  
   Kozlov, 1989
  • †Auliepterix minima Kozlov, 1989
  • †Auliepterix mirabilis Kozlov, 1989
• †Baltimartyria
  Baltimartyria
  Baltimartyria is an extinct genus of primitive metallic moths in the family Micropterigidae. The genus is solely known from the Early Eocene Baltic amber deposits in the Baltic Sea region of Europe. The genus currently contains two described species, Baltimartyria proavitella and Baltimartyria...
  
   Skalski, 1995
  • †Baltimartyria rasnitsyni Mey, 2011
  • †Baltimartyria proavitella (Rebel, 1936)
• Micropterix
  Micropterix
  Micropterix is a genus of small primitive metallic moths in the insect order Lepidoptera within the family Micropterigidae that is distributed across Europe south to North Africa and east as far as Japan...
  
   Hübner, 1825
  • †Micropterix anglica
    Micropterix anglica
    Micropterix anglica is an extinct species of moth belonging to the family Micropterigidae. It was described by Jarzembowski in 1980.Fossil remains, dated to the Oligocene, have been found on the Isle of Wight. The single known specimen consists of the greater part of a forewing, original length...
    
     Jarzembowski, 1980
  • †Micropterix gertraudae
    Micropterix gertraudae
    Micropterix gertraudae is an extinct species of moth belonging to the family Micropterigidae. It was described by Kurz M. A & M. E. Kurz in 2010. It is only known from the single type specimen in Baltic amber, which has been mined at Palmnicken near Kaliningrad....
    
     Kurz M. A & M. E. Kurz, 2010
  • †Micropterix immensipalpa
    Micropterix immensipalpa
    Micropterix immensipalpa is an extinct species of moth belonging to the family Micropterigidae. It was described by Kuznezov in 1941. It is only known from the single type specimen in Baltic amber....
    
     (Kusnezov, 1941) (sometimes placed in Eriocraniidae as Electrocrania immensipalpa)
• †Moleropterix
  Moleropterix
  Moleropterix is an extinct genus of small primitive metallic moths within the family Micropterigidae, containing one species, Moleropterix kalbei. It is described from a well preserved forewing of the Fur Formation of the earliest Eocene of Denmark....
  
   Engel & Kinzelbach, 2008
  • †Moleropterix kalbei Engel & Kinzelbach, 2008 (sometimes placed in Eolepidopterigidae)
• †Palaeolepidopterix
  Palaeolepidopterix
  Palaeolepidopterix is an extinct genus of small primitive metallic moths within the extant family Micropterigidae or extinct family Eolepidopterigidae, containing one species, Palaeolepidopterix aurea. It is known from the Late Jurassic Karabastau Svita of Kazakhstan....
  
   Kozlov, 1989
  • †Palaeolepidopterix aurea Kozlov, 1989
• †Palaeosabatinca
  Palaeosabatinca
  Palaeosabatinca is an extinct genus of small primitive metallic moths within the family Micropterigidae, containing one species, Palaeosabatinca zherichini . It is known from Russia. The fossil remains are dated to the Lower Cretaceous....
  
   Kozlov, 1989
  • †Palaeosabatinca zherichini Kozlov, 1988
• †Parasabatinca
  Parasabatinca
  Parasabatinca is an extinct genus of small primitive metallic moths within the extant family Micropterigidae or extinct family Eolepidopterigidae, containing two species...
  
   Whalley, 1978
  • †Parasabatinca aftimacrai Whalley, 1978
  • †Parasabatinca caldasae Martins Neto & Vulcano, 1989
• Sabatinca
  Sabatinca
  Sabatinca is a genus of small primitive metallic moths in the insect order Lepidoptera within the family Micropterigidae. Palaeomicra and Micropardalis were both established as subgenera of Sabatinca, but were both raised to generic level by Minet in 1985.-Selected Species:*Sabatinca aemula...
  
   Walker, 1863
  • †Sabatinca perveta
    Sabatinca perveta
    Sabatinca perveta is an extinct species of moth belonging to the family Micropterigidae. It is known only from the single type specimen, which has been found in Burmese amber in present day Myanmar. It is assumed to be of Cretaceous origin, embedded in Miocenic clay and is therefore dated between...
    
     (Cockerell, 1919)

Family Nepticulidae

Nepticulidae

Nepticulidae is a family of very small moths with a worldwide distribution. They are characterised by eyecaps over the eyes . These pigmy moths or midget moths, as they are commonly known, include the smallest of all living moths, with a wingspan that can be as little as 3 mm...

• †Foliofossor Jarzembowski, 1989
  • †Foliofossor cranei Jarzembwoski, 1989 (Paleocene; England; mines in Platanus sp. leaves) (originally placed in Agromyzidae)
• †Stigmellites
  Stigmellites
  Stigmellites is a genus of Lepidopteran fossils. It is only known from trace fossils of leaf mines.-Species:*Stigmellites araliae was described from a fossil mine in a Araliaceae species...
  
   Kernbach, 1967
  • †Stigmellites araliae (Fric, 1882) (Czech Republic; mine in Araliaceae sp. leaf)
  • †Stigmellites baltica (Kozlov, 1988) (Eocene; Baltic Amber; mine)
  • †Stigmellites caruini-orientalis Straus, 1977 (Pliocene; Hessen, Germany; mine in Carpinus orientalis fossilis leaf)
  • †Stigmellites heringi Kernbach, 1967 (Pliocene; Hessen, Germany; mine in Berberis sp. leaf)
  • †Stigmellites kzyldzharica (Kozlov, 1988) (Kazakhstan; mine in Platanus sp. leaf)
  • †Stigmellites messelensis Straus, 1976 (Eocene; Messel, Germany; mine)
  • †Stigmellites pliotityrella Kernbach, 1967 (Pliocene; Hessen, Germany; mine in Fagus silvatica leaf)
  • †Stigmellites samsonovi Kozlov, 1988 (Kazakhstan; mine in Trochodendroides arctica leaf)
  • †Stigmellites serpentina (Kozlov, 1988) (Kazakhstan mine in Trochodendroides arctica leaf)
  • †Stigmellites sharovi (Kozlov, 1988) (Kazakhstan mine in Trochodendroides arctica leaf)
  • †Stigmellites tyshchenkoi (Kozlov, 1988) (Kazakhstan mine in Platanus latior leaf)
  • †Stigmellites zelkovae Straus, 1977 (Pliocene; Hessen, Germany; mine in Zelkova sp. leaf)

Family Arctiidae

Arctiidae

Arctiidae is a large and diverse family of moths with around 11,000 species found all over the world, including 6,000 neotropical species. This family includes the groups commonly known as tiger moths , which usually have bright colours, footmen , lichen moths and wasp moths...

• †Oligamatites
  Oligamatites
  Oligamatites is a genus of moth in the family Arctiidae.-References:*...
  
   Kusnezov, 1928
  • †Oligamatites martynovi Kusnezov, 1928 (Kazakhstan, Upper Oligocene)
• †Stauropolia
  Stauropolia
  Stauropolia is an extinct genus of moth in the family Arctiidae, with one species, Stauropolia nekrutenkoi Skalski, 1988 from Miocene from Caucasus.-References:*...
  
   Skalski, 1988
  • †Stauropolia nekrutenkoi Skalski, 1988 (Caucasus, Miocene)

Family Noctuidae

Noctuidae

The Noctuidae or owlet moths are a family of robustly-built moths that includes more than 35,000 known species out of possibly 100,000 total, in more than 4,200 genera. They constitute the largest family in the Lepidoptera....

• †Noctuites
  Noctuites
  Noctuites is a genus of moths of the Noctuidae family.-References:*...
  
   Heer, 1849
  • †Noctuites haidingeri Heer, 1849 (Croatia, Radoboj, Tertiary)
• †Xyleutites Kozhanchikov, 1957
  • †Xyleutites miocenicus Kozhanchikov, 1957 (northern Caucasus, Miocene) (originally in Cossidae)

Family Notodontidae

Notodontidae

Notodontidae is a family of moths with approximately 3,500 known species. Moths of this family are found in all parts of the world, but they are most concentrated in tropical areas, especially in the New World...

• †Cerurites Kernbach, 1967
  • †Cerurites wagneri Kernbach, 1967 (Germany, Willershausen, Tertiary)

Family Pterophoridae

• Pterophorus
  Pterophorus
  Pterophorus is a genus of moth in the Pterophoridae family.-Species:*Pterophorus africanus Ustjuzhanin et Kovtunovich, 2010*Pterophorus albidus *Pterophorus aliubasignum *Pterophorus ashanti *Pterophorus bacteriopa...
  
   Schäffer, 1766
  • †Pterophorus oligocenus
    Pterophorus oligocenus
    Pterophorus oligocenus is an extinct moth of the Pterophoridae family. It is the only known fossil of the Pterophoridae family. It was discovered near Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhone in France. It is a late Oligocene fossil, dated to 25-30 million years B.P....
    
     Bigot, Nel & Nel, 1986

Family Pyralidae

Pyralidae

The Pyralidae or snout moths are a family of Lepidoptera in the ditrysian superfamily Pyraloidea. In many classifications, the grass moths are included in the Pyralidae as a subfamily, making the combined group one of the largest families in the Lepidoptera...

• †Glendotricha Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Glendotricha olgae Kusnezov , 1941
• †Pyralites Heer, 1856
  • †Pyralites obscures Heer, 1856
  • †Pyralites preecei Jarzembowski, 1980

Family Castniidae

Castniidae

Castniidae, or castniid moths, is a small family of moths with less than 200 species: The majority are Neotropical with some in Australia and a few in south-east Asia. These are medium-sized to very large moths, usually with drab, cryptically-marked forewings and brightly coloured hindwings. They...

• †Dominickus
  Dominickus
  Dominickus is an extinct genus of moth in the butterfly-moth family Castniidae containing a single species Dominickus castnioides...
  
   Tindale, 1985
  • †Dominickus castinodes
    Dominickus
    Dominickus is an extinct genus of moth in the butterfly-moth family Castniidae containing a single species Dominickus castnioides...
    
     Tindale, 1985 (Priabonian
    Priabonian
    The Priabonian is, in the ICS's geologic timescale, the latest age or the upper stage of the Eocene epoch or series. It spans the time between and...
    
    , Florissant Formation, Colorado)

Family Psychidae

• Dahlica Enderlein, 1912
  • Dahlica triquetrella
    Dahlica triquetrella
    Dahlica triquetrella is a moth of the Psychidae family. It is found in Europe and North America.The wingspan is 9-13 mm for males. Females are wingless. Though winged males occur in some sites in Europe, only the parthenogenetic wingless female form of Dahlica triquetrella has been recorded in...
    
     (Hübner, 1813) (Baltic Amber)
• †Palaeopsyche Sobczyk & Kobbert, 2009
  • †Palaeopsyche secundum Sobczyk & Kobbert, 2009 (Baltic Amber)
  • †Palaeopsyche transversum Sobczyk & Kobbert, 2009 (Baltic Amber)
• †Psychites Kozlov, 1989
  • †Psychites pristinella Kozlov, 1989 (Baltic Region, Tertiary, Amber)
• Siederia
  Siederia
  Siederia is a genus of small moths. It belongs to the bagworm moth family . Therein, it is placed in subfamily Naryciinae, or, if that is not considered sufficiently distinct, in the Taleporiinae....
  
   Meier, 1957
  • Siederia pineti (Zeller, 1852)
• Sterrhopterix Hübner, 1825
  • †Sterrhopteryx pristinella Rebel, 1934
• Taleporia
  Taleporia
  Taleporia is a genus of small moths. It belongs to the bagworm moth family . The "wastebin genus" Solenobia is techically a junior synonym of the present genus, but most of the species formerly placed there actually belong to other genera of subfamilies Taleporiinae and Naryciinae .-Selected...
  
   Hübner, 1825
  • Taleporia tubulosa
    Taleporia tubulosa
    Large Birch Bright is a small nocturnal moth from the bagworm moth family . It is found locally in Europe, from southern Scotland, through west and central Europe, east up to Russia and the Balkan. In the north it is found in Fennoscandia...
    
     (Retzius, 1783)
• Bacotia Tutt, 1899
  • Bacotia claustrella (Bruand, 1845)

Family Tineidae

Tineidae

Tineidae is a family of moths in the order Lepidoptera. Collectively, they are known as fungus moths or tineid moths. The family contains considerably more than 3,000 species in over 300 genera. Most of the tineid moths are small or medium-sized, with wings held roofwise over the body at rest...

• †Architinea Rebel, 1934
  • †Architinea balticella Rebel, 1934
  • †Architinea sepositella Rebel, 1934
• †Dysmasiites Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Dysmasiites carpenteri Kusnezov, 1941
• †Electromeessia Kozlov, 1987
  • †Electromeessia zagulijaevi Kozlov, 1987 (Baltic region, Eocene Amber)
• †Glessoscardia Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Glessoscardia gerasimovi Kusnezov, 1941
• †Martynea Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Martynea rebeli Kusnezov, 1941
• †Monopibaltia Skalski, 1974
  • †Monopibaltia ignitella Skalski, 1974 (Baltic region, Eocene Amber)
• †Palaeoinfurcitinea Kozlov, 1987
  • †Palaeoinfurcitinea rohdendorfi Kozlov, 1987 (Russia, Eocene Amber)
• †Palaeoscardiites Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Palaeoscardiites mordvilkoi Kusnezov, 1941
• †Palaeotinea Kozlov, 1987
  • †Palaeotinea rasnitsyni Kozlov, 1987
• †Paratriaxomasia Jarzembowski, 1980
  • †Paratriaxomasia solentensis Jarzembowski, 1980
• †Proscardiites Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Proscardiites martynovi Kusnezov, 1941
• †Pseudocephitinea Kozlov, 1987
  • †Pseudocephitinea svetlanae Kozlov, 1987 (Russia, Eocene Amber)
• †Scardiites Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Scardiites meyricki Kusnezov, 1941
• †Simulotenia Skalski, 1977
  • †Simulotenia intermedia Skalski, 1977
• †Tillyardinea Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Tillyardinea eocaenica Kusnezov, 1941
• Tinea
  Tinea (moth)
  Tinea is a genus of the fungus moth family, Tineidae. Therein, it belongs to the subfamily Tineinae. As evident by its name, it is the type genus of its subfamily and family...
  
   Linnaeus, 1758
  • †Tinea antique Rebel, 1822
• †Tineitella Fletcher, 1940
  • †Tineitella crystalli Kawall, 1876 (originally in Tineites)
  • †Tineitella sucinacius Kozlov, 1987 (originally in Tineites)
• †Tineolamima Rebel, 1934
  • †Tineolamima aurella Rebel, 1934
• †Tineosemopsis Skalski, 1974
  • †Tineosemopsis decurtatus Skalski, 1974

Family Tortricidae

Tortricidae

Tortricidae is a family of moths, commonly known as tortrix moths, in the order Lepidoptera. Tortricidae is a large family with over 9,400 species described, and is the sole member of the superfamily Tortricoidea. Many of these are economically important pests. Olethreutidae is a junior synonym...

• †Electresia
  Electresia
  Electresia is a genus of moths belonging to the subfamily Olethreutinae of the family Tortricidae.-External links:*...
  
   Kusnezov, 1941
  • †Electresia zalesskii Kusnezov, 1941 (Baltic region, Eocene Amber)
• †Spatalistiforma
  Spatalistiforma
  Spatalistiforma is a genus of moths belonging to the Tortricidae family.-External links:*...
  
   Skalski, 1992
  • †Spatalistiforma submerga Skalski, 1981 (Baltic Amber)
• †Tortricibaltia
  Tortricibaltia
  Tortricibaltia is a genus of moths belonging to the Tortricidae family....
  
   Skalski, 1992
  • †Tortricibaltia diakonoffi Skalski, 1981 (Baltic Amber)
• †Tortricidrosis Skalski, 1973
  • †Tortricidrosis inclusa Skalski, 1973
• Tortrix
  Tortrix
  Tortrix is a genus of moths belonging to the Tortricidae family.-Species:*Tortrix sinapina *Tortrix viridana Tortrix? destructus Tortrix? florissantana...
  
   Linnaeus, 1758
  • †Tortrix? destructus
    Tortrix? destructus
    Tortrix? destructus is an extinct species of moth in the family Tortricidae, and possibly in the modern genus Tortrix. The species is known from late Eocene, Priabonian stage, lake deposits near the small community of Florissant in Teller County, Colorado, USA.-History and classification:Tortrix?...
    
     Cockerell, 1916 (Priabonian
    Priabonian
    The Priabonian is, in the ICS's geologic timescale, the latest age or the upper stage of the Eocene epoch or series. It spans the time between and...
    
    , Florissant Formation, Colorado)
  • †Tortrix? florissantana
    Tortrix? florissantana
    Tortrix? florissantana is an extinct species of moth in the family Tortricidae, and possibly in the modern genus Tortrix. The species is known from late Eocene, Priabonian stage, lake deposits near the small community of Florissant in Teller County, Colorado, USA.-History and...
    
     Cockerell, 1907 (Priabonian
    Priabonian
    The Priabonian is, in the ICS's geologic timescale, the latest age or the upper stage of the Eocene epoch or series. It spans the time between and...
    
    , Florissant Formation, Colorado)

Family Heliodinidae

Heliodinidae

Heliodinidae is a family of small moths with slender bodies and narrow wings. Members of this family are found in all parts of the world.-Genera:*Acanthocasis*Actinoscelis*Adamantoscelis*Aenicteria*Aetole*Agalmoscelis...

• †Baltonides Skalski, 1981
  • †Baltonides roeselliformis Skalski, 1981 (Baltic region, Late Eocene)

Family Lyonetiidae

Lyonetiidae

Lyonetiidae is a family of moths. These are small, slender moths, the wingspan rarely exceeding 1 cm. The very narrow forewings, held folded backwards covering the hindwings and abdomen, often have pointed apices noticeably up- or down-turned. The larvae are leaf miners.The families Bucculatricidae...

• †Prolyonetia
  Prolyonetia
  Prolyonetia is an extinct genus of moths in the family Lyonetiidae. The single species Prolyonetia cockerelli Kusnetzov , 1941, has been described from Baltic amber.-External links:*...
  
   Kusnezov, 1941 (Eocene; Baltic amber
  Baltic amber
  The Baltic region is home to the largest known deposit of amber, called Baltic amber or succinite, with about 80% of the world's known amber found there. It dates from 44 million years ago...
  
  , Europe)
  • †Prolyonetia cockerelli Kusnezov, 1941

Family Yponomeutidae

• †Epinomeuta
  Epinomeuta
  Epinomeuta is a genus of moths of the Yponomeutidae family.-Species:*Epinomeuta acutipennella - Rebel , 1935 *Epinomeuta inversella - Rebel , 1935 *Epinomeuta minorella - Rebel , 1935 *Epinomeuta truncatipennella - Rebel , 1935...
  
   Rebel, 1936
  • †Epinomeuta truncatipennella Rebel, 1936

Family Zygaenidae

Zygaenidae

The Zygaenidae moths are a family of Lepidoptera. The majority of zygaenids are tropical, but they are nevertheless quite well represented in temperate regions. There are about 1000 species. Various species are commonly known as Burnet or Forester moths, often qualified by the number of spots,...

• Neurosymploca Wallengren, 1858
  • †Neurosymploca? oligocenica
    Neurosymploca? oligocenica
    Neurosymploca? oligocenica is an extinct species of moth in the family Zygaenidae, and possibly in the modern genus Neurosymploca. The species is known from Early Oligocene, Rupelian stage, lake deposits near the commune of Céreste in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, France.-History and...
    
     Fernández-Rubio & Nel, 2000 (Lower Stampian
    Rupelian
    The Rupelian is, in the geologic timescale, the older of two ages or the lower of two stages of the Oligocene epoch/series. It spans the time between and . It is preceded by the Priabonian stage and is followed by the Chattian stage....
    
    , Céreste
    Céreste
    Céreste is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France.-History:A Gallo-Roman period settlement was established in the quarter of today's Saint-Sauveur priory, possibly as a crossing control point for the river...
    
    , Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
    Alpes-de-Haute-Provence
    Alpes-de-Haute-Provence is a French department in the south of France, it was formerly part of the province of Provence.- History :Nord-de-Provence was one of the 83 original departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
    
    , France)
• Zygaena
  Zygaena
  Zygaena may refer to:* Zygaena , a genus of moths of the family Zygaenidae, commonly referred to as "burnets"* Sphyrna zygaena, the smooth hammerhead, a species of hammerhead shark...
  
   Fabricius, 1775
  • †"Zygaena" miocaenica Reiss, 1936 (Germany)
  • †"Zygaena" turolensis Fernández-Rubio, de Olano & Cunarro, 1991
• †Zygaenites Burgeff, 1951
  • †Zygaenites controversus Burgeff, 1951 (Germany, Miocene)

Family †Archaeolepidae

• †Archaeolepis
  Archaeolepis
  Archaeolepis mane is the earliest known Lepidopteran fossil. It dates from the Lower Jurassic and according to Grimaldi & Engel a recent re-examination of the specimen has given additional support to its ordinal placement...
  
   Whalley, 1985
  • †Archaeolepis mane Whalley, 1985

Family †Curvicubitidae Hong, 1984

• †Curvicubitus Hong, 1984
  • †Curvicubitus triassicus Hong, 1984 (China, Middle Triassic)

Family †Mesokristenseniidae Huang, Nel & Minet, 2010

• †Mesokristensenia
  Mesokristensenia
  Mesokristensenia is an extinct genus of moth in the family Mesokristenseniidae. It existed in what is now China during the middle Jurassic period. It was named by Huang Diying, André Nel and Joël Minet in 2010, and the type species is Mesokristensenia latipenna.Currently, three species are known...
  
   Huang, Nel & Minet, 2010
  • †Mesokristensenia angustipenna Huang, Nel & Minet, 2010
  • †Mesokristensenia latipenna Huang, Nel & Minet, 2010
  • †Mesokristensenia sinica Huang, Nel & Minet, 2010

External links

• International Palaeoentomological Society
• Palaeoentomology in Russia in both English and Russian
• Tales from the Butterfly Garden: Lepidoptera Curious
• Monophyly of Noctuoidea