Andesiana

Andesiana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Lepidoptera
Family:	Andesianidae Davis and Gentili, 2003
Genus:	Andesiana Gentili, 1989
Type species
Andesiana lamellata Gentili, 1989
species
Andesiana lamellata Gentili, 1989 Andesiana brunnea Gentili, 1989 Andesiana similis Gentili, 1989
Diversity
1 genus and 3 species

Andesiana is a genus representing its own family Andesianidae and superfamily Andesianoidea, the "Andean endemic moths". It contains three species with a wingspan up to 5.4 cm. in female A. similis and 3.5 cm. in males (Davis and Gentili, 2003). This far surpasses in size any previously known monotrysian moth. These large Microlepidoptera[1] are restricted to Andean South America, from where they were described originally in 1989 in the family Cossidae by their discoverer Patricia Gentili.

Systematics

The vein "R2" in the hindwing is two-branched, suggesting that the Andesianidae is basal to the superfamily Nepticulidae, but the way the wings are coupled suggests it had a later origination within the Monotrysia, where it can be placed based on characters of the female reproductive system (Davis and Gentili, 2003). The relationships of Andesiana with representatives of other lepidopteran superfamilies is currently under investigation using DNA sequences [2].

Morphology and identification

The labial palpi have an elongated second segment, the tibia of the male hindleg has a "hairpencil" contained in a pouch on the femur, and the antennae are "bipectinate" in the male and "filiform" in the female; the proboscis is much reduced. See Davis and Gentili (2003) for additional details, such as genitalia characters distinguishing this group.

Distribution

Nothofagus forests of Andean Chile and Argentina (Davis and Gentili, 2003).

References

• Davis, D. R., & P. Gentili. (2003). Andesianidae, a new family of monotrysian moths (Lepidoptera: Andesianoidea) from South America. Invertebrate Systematics, 17: 15-26. Abstract

External links

• leptree.net

Nomenclatural notes

Lepindex [3] accessed March 2007 incorrectly places the species "neurotenes Turner 1932" from Queensland in the genus "Andesiana, Gentili, 1986" of which the database suggests Archaeoses Turner, 1932 (a cossid [4])is a junior subjective synonym. Presumably this is not to be confused with an Oecophoridae moth of the same name neurotenes described by Turner in the genus Antiopala in 1939 and currently placed in the genus Prepalla [5]