Ditrysia Explained

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 (in contrast to the Monotrysia).

About 98% of described species of Lepidoptera belong to Ditrysia. As larvae, they initially feed on plants until they grow to become adults and feed on nectar. They function as herbivores, pollinators, and prey in terrestrial ecosystems, while also being extremely damaging to the development of agriculture.^[1] The Lepidoptera group can be divided into the primitive but paraphyletic "micromoths" and the derived monophyletic Apoditrysia, which include mostly larger moths, as well as the butterflies.Those with a dorsal heart vessel belong in section Cossina.^[2] Others, having a ventral heart vessel, belong in section Tineina.^[3] While it is difficult to pinpoint the origin of affinities between clades, Tineoidea are found to be useful in understanding the vast diversity in Ditrysia. Obstecomera and Macrolepidoptera are other examples of Ditrysia's subclades. Apoditrysia, Obtectomera, and Macrolepidoptera will be considered monophyletic if one or more organisms are either included or excluded from the clade.^[4]

See also

• Lepidoptera
• Taxonomy of Lepidoptera

Further reading

• Book: Kristensen NP, Skalski AW . 1999 . Phylogeny and paleontology . 7–25 . Lepidoptera: Moths and Butterflies. 1. Evolution, Systematics, and Biogeography. . Handbook of Zoology . IV . 35 . Kristensen NP . De Gruyter . Berlin and New York .
• Regier JC, Mitter C, Davis DR, Harrison TL, Sohn JC, Cummings MP, Zwick A, Mitter KT . A molecular phylogeny and revised classification for the oldest ditrysian moth lineages (L epidoptera: T ineoidea), with implications for ancestral feeding habits of the mega‐diverse D itrysia. . Systematic Entomology . April 2015 . 40 . 2 . 409–32 . 10.1111/syen.12110 . 85287782 .

External links

• Tree of Life project page: Ditrysia

Notes and References

1. Regier. Jerome C.. Zwick. Andreas. Cummings. Michael P.. Kawahara. Akito Y.. Cho. Soowon. Weller. Susan. Roe. Amanda. Baixeras. Joaquin. Brown. John W.. Parr. Cynthia. Davis. Donald R.. 2009-12-02. Toward reconstructing the evolution of advanced moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera: Ditrysia): an initial molecular study. BMC Evolutionary Biology. 9. 1. 280. 10.1186/1471-2148-9-280. 19954545. 1471-2148. 2796670 . 2009BMCEE...9..280R . free .
2. Book: Capinera J . 2008 . Encyclopedia of Entomology . 2nd . Springer Verlag . New York . 657 . 9781402062421 .
3. Web site: Tineina - Wiktionary. 2021-02-17. en.m.wiktionary.org.
4. Mutanen M, Wahlberg N, Kaila L . Comprehensive gene and taxon coverage elucidates radiation patterns in moths and butterflies . Proceedings. Biological Sciences . 277 . 1695 . 2839–48 . September 2010 . 20444718 . 2981981 . 10.1098/rspb.2010.0392 .