Sphenarches is a genus of 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 in the family Pterophoridae. Species in this genus are distributed in regions with pantropical

Pantropical

In biogeography, a pantropical distribution one which covers tropical regions of all of the major continents, i.e. in Africa, in Asia and in the Americas. Examples include the plant genera Acacia and Bacopa....

 climates, and are also found in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 and southern Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. Hostplants for the genus are Dolichos lablab, Lagenaria leucantha clavata, and L. leucantha gourda.

Species

• Sphenarches anisodactylus
  Sphenarches anisodactylus
  The Geranium Plume Moth is a moth of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in western Africa, Madagascar, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Japan, the New Hebrides and Central and South America, as well as Australia, where it has been recorded from Cape York to central New South Wales...
  
  (syn: Sphenarches synophrys (type))
• Sphenarches bilineatus
  Sphenarches bilineatus
  Sphenarches bilineatus is a moth of the Pterophoridae family. It is known from Samoa.The length of the forewings is 7 mm for males and 7.2 mm for females....
  
  Yano, 1963
• Sphenarches bifurcatus
  Sphenarches bifurcatus
  Sphenarches bifurcatus is a moth of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ....
  
  
• Sphenarches caffer
  Sphenarches caffer
  The Bottle Gourd Plume Moth is a moth of the Pterophoridae family. It is known from India, Malaysia, Mauritius, the Seychelles and South Africa....
  
  (Zeller, 1852)
• Sphenarches cafferoides
  Sphenarches cafferoides
  Sphenarches cafferoides is a moth of the Pterophoridae family. It is known from Madagascar....
  
  Gibeaux, 1996
• Sphenarches nanellus
  Sphenarches nanellus
  Sphenarches nanellus is a species of moth in the genus Lioptilodes, known from Brazil and Peru. The hostplant for the species is Eupatorium betonicaeforme. Moths in this species take flight in March, May, and December, and have a wingspan of approximately 9-11 millimetres....
  
  
• Sphenarches ontario
  Sphenarches ontario
  Sphenarches ontario is a moth of the Pterophoridae family. It known from Ontario.The wingspan is about 14 mm.The larvae feed on the inflorescences of certain grape species.-External links:*...
  
  (McDunnough, 1927)
• Sphenarches zanclistes
  Sphenarches zanclistes
  Sphenarches zanclistes is a moth of the Pterophoridae family. It is found in Australia.Larvae have been recorded feeding on Dolichos lablab, Vigna unguiculata and Vigna sava.-Original Description:-External links:***...
  
  (Meyrick, 1905)

Species of doubtful validity

Sphenarches languidus, originally described as Oxyptilus languidus from Colombia

Colombia

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

 by Felder & Rogenhofer in 1875 is of doubtful validity. It might be a synonym of Sphenarches nanellus

Sphenarches nanellus

Sphenarches nanellus is a species of moth in the genus Lioptilodes, known from Brazil and Peru. The hostplant for the species is Eupatorium betonicaeforme. Moths in this species take flight in March, May, and December, and have a wingspan of approximately 9-11 millimetres....

, but the type specimen of this species is in poor condition and no additional material has been found which matches this species. With the present knowledge it is
not possible to separate the two species.