x
Home
Search
Topics
Almanac
Science
Nature
People
History
Society
Signup
Login
HOME
TOPICS
ALMANAC
SCIENCE
NATURE
PEOPLE
HISTORY
SOCIETY
PHILOSOPHY
Sematurinae
Topic Home
Discussion
0
Definition
Encyclopedia
Sematurinae is a subfamily of moths
Moths
Moths may refer to:* Gustav Moths , German rower* The Moths!, an English indie rock band* MOTHS, members of the Memorable Order of Tin Hats...

 in the family Sematuridae
Sematuridae
Sematuridae is a family of moths in the lepidopteran order, currently containing two subfamilies .-Taxonomy, systematics, and identification:...

, represented by at least 29 species in the Neotropics.

Taxonomy, classification and identification

Sematurinae has three principal genera, and possibly another two. The hindwing of Coronidia is distinguished by an iridescent blue band, but Homidiana characteristically has pink, orange or yellow markings, especially in females (Minet and Scoble, 1999). The genus Sematura is large, brown and tailed, resembling to some extent the genus Lyssa
Uraniinae
The Uraniinae or uraniine moths are a subfamily of moths in the family Uraniidae. It contains seven genera that occur in the tropics of the world....

. The approximately twelve other sematurid species in the genera Anurapteryx and Lonchotura are placed here for now (making about 41 species) but may not belong in this subfamily; one species, Anurapteryx crenulata reaches the subtropics of Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

 (Minet and Scoble, 1999). The relationships within Sematuridae
Sematuridae
Sematuridae is a family of moths in the lepidopteran order, currently containing two subfamilies .-Taxonomy, systematics, and identification:...

 clearly need deeper investigation.
  • Note: the name Nothus is preoccupied by a genus of Coleoptera so despite its lack of date precedence the name Sematura should be preferred (Minet and Scoble, 1999). Mania was however described at an earlier date (1821; 1823 listed in LepIndex) than Sematura according to Index Animalium so whilst this is not a name in popular use, the priority issue should be further examined.

Behaviour

The adult moths of Sematurinae are either day or night-flying, depending on the genus and have the wings outspread at rest and the genus Sematura displays impressive eyespots at the hindwing tails.

Biology

The biology of Sematurinae is so far poorly known. The larva of Homidiana was illustrated by Westwood (1879) who incorrectly placed it among Coronidia, and was described by Fassl (1910). In 1995–1998, caterpillars were found in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....

. Sematurine eggs have been described by Minet and Scoble (1999:302), and are upright, high, with vertical and finer transverse ribs. The caterpillars of Homidiana subpicta have rows of black spines either side of the dorsal
Dorsum (biology)
In anatomy, the dorsum is the upper side of animals that typically run, fly, or swim in a horizontal position, and the back side of animals that walk upright. In vertebrates the dorsum contains the backbone. The term dorsal refers to anatomical structures that are either situated toward or grow...

 midline and five pairs of proleg
Proleg
A Proleg is the small fleshy, stub structure found on the ventral surface of the abdomen of most larval forms of insects of the order Lepidoptera, though they can also be found on other larval insects such as sawflies and a few types of flies....

s. The larva of Coronidia orithea lacks such spines, and is well camouflage
Camouflage
Camouflage is a method of concealment that allows an otherwise visible animal, military vehicle, or other object to remain unnoticed, by blending with its environment. Examples include a leopard's spotted coat, the battledress of a modern soldier and a leaf-mimic butterfly...

d like a lichen-covered twig and has realistic-looking false eyes making it resemble a predatory spider. The 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 of Sematura were reared in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....

 in 2001 and are a bit similar to those of Coronidia being well camouflage
Camouflage
Camouflage is a method of concealment that allows an otherwise visible animal, military vehicle, or other object to remain unnoticed, by blending with its environment. Examples include a leopard's spotted coat, the battledress of a modern soldier and a leaf-mimic butterfly...

d but bearing small projections rather than long spines one the dorsal surface. Like some Uraniidae
Uraniidae
The Uraniidae are a family of moths containing four subfamilies, ninety genera, and roughly seven-hundred species. The family is distributed throughout the tropics of Americas, Africa and Indo-Australia. Some of the tropical species are known for their bright, butterfly-like colors and are called...

, 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...

tion occurs on the ground among debris. The pupa of Homidiana has a long projecting proboscis
Glossary of Lepidopteran terms
This glossary describes the terms used in the formal descriptions of insect species, jargon used mostly by professionals or entomologist....

 "sheath" with eight hooklets at the cremaster tip (Minet and Scoble, 1999).

Larval hostplants

The caterpillar
Caterpillar
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...

 of Coronidia orithea is so far only known to feed on mistletoe
Mistletoe
Mistletoe is the common name for obligate hemi-parasitic plants in several families in the order Santalales. The plants in question grow attached to and within the branches of a tree or shrub.-Mistletoe in the genus Viscum:...

s (Viscaceae
Viscaceae
Viscaceae is a family of flowering plants. In past decades, several systems of plant taxonomy recognized this family, notably the 1981 Cronquist system...

: Phoradendron
Phoradendron
Phoradendron is a genus of mistletoes, native to warm temperate and tropical regions of the Americas. Traditionally, the genus has been placed in the family Viscaceae, but recent genetic research acknowledged by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group shows this family to be correctly placed within a larger...

 quadrangulare). Homidiana subpicta feeds on a more diverse range of plants, including the families Araliaceae
Araliaceae
Araliaceae is a family of flowering plants, also known as the Aralia family or Ivy family. The family includes 254 species of trees, shrubs, lianas and perennial herbaceous plants into 2 subfamilies...

 (Oreopanax
Oreopanax
Oreopanax is a genus of shrubs and trees in the family Araliaceae, comprising between 80 and 150 species depending on source. They are native to the Americas, with a range extending from Mexico and the Antilles to Argentina and Brazil, with most species occurring above 500 m.a.s.l. Sinopanax was...

), Gesneriaceae
Gesneriaceae
Gesneriaceae is a family of flowering plants consisting of ca. 150 genera and ca. 3,200 species in the Old World and New World tropics and subtropics, with a very small number extending to temperate areas. Many species have colorful and showy flowers and are cultivated as ornamental plants.Most...

, Myrsinaceae
Myrsinaceae
Myrsinaceae, or the Myrsine family, is a rather large family from the order Ericales. It consists of 35 genera and about 1000 species....

 (Ardisia
Ardisia
Ardisia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Myrsinaceae , native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Americas, Asia, and Australasia...

, Myrsine
Myrsine
Myrsine is a genus of flowering plants, the nominate genus of the family Myrsinaceae. It is found nearly worldwide, primarily in tropical and subtropical areas...

, Piperaceae
Piperaceae
The Piperaceae, also known as the pepper family, is a large family of flowering plants. The group contains roughly 3,610 currently accepted species in five genera. The vast majority of peppers can be found within the two main genera: Piper and Peperomia .Members of the Piperaceae may be small...

 (Piper
Piper (genus)
Piper, the pepper plants or pepper vines , are an economically and ecologically important genus in the family Piperaceae...

), Solanaceae (Solanum
Solanum
Solanum, the nightshades, horsenettles and relatives, is a large and diverse genus of annual and perennial plants. They grow as forbs, vines, subshrubs, shrubs, and small trees, and often have attractive fruit and flowers. Many formerly independent genera like Lycopersicon or Cyphomandra are...

), Onagraceae
Onagraceae
Onagraceae, also known as the Willowherb family or Evening Primrose family, are a family of flowering plants. The family includes about 640-650 species of herbs, shrubs, and trees in 20-24 genera...

 (Ludwigia
Ludwigia
Ludwigia is a genus of about 75 species of aquatic plants with a cosmopolitan but mainly tropical distribution.Selected species...

) and Theophrastaceae
Theophrastaceae
Theophrastaceae is a small family of flowering plants. As currently circumscribed, the family consists of seven genera and 95 species of trees or shrubs, native to tropical regions of the Americas....

 (Clavija). "Sematura luna" reared in 2001 whose well-camouflage
Camouflage
Camouflage is a method of concealment that allows an otherwise visible animal, military vehicle, or other object to remain unnoticed, by blending with its environment. Examples include a leopard's spotted coat, the battledress of a modern soldier and a leaf-mimic butterfly...

d 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...

 is reported to feed on the legume Pentaclethra macroloba (Mimosoideae
Mimosoideae
Mimosoideae is a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae characterized by flowers with small petals and numerous prominent stamens...

) and on Syzygium
Syzygium
Syzygium is a genus of flowering plants that belongs to the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. The genus comprises about 1100 species, and has a native range that extends from Africa and Madagascar through southern Asia east through the Pacific...

 longifolium (Myrtaceae).

Sources

  • NHM Lepindex
  • Dyer, L.A. and G.L. Gentry. 2002. Caterpillars and parasitoids of a tropical lowland wet forest, caterpillars.org, Accessed, March 2007.

External links


Provisional list of species (based on LepIndex)

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
Silverdale Interactive © 2024. All Rights Reserved.
 
x
OK