Andesiana

Taxobox | name = Andesiana
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Arthropoda
classis = Insecta
ordo = Lepidoptera
subordo = Glossata
infraordo = Heteroneura
unranked_familia = Monotrysia
superfamilia = Andesianoidea
superfamilia_authority = Davis and Gentili, 2003
familia = Andesianidae
familia_authority = Davis and Gentili, 2003
genus = "Andesiana"
genus_authority = Gentili, 1989
type_species = "Andesiana lamellata" Gentili, 1989
diversity_link = 3 species
subdivision_ranks = species
subdivision =
*"Andesiana lamellata" Gentili, 1989
*"Andesiana brunnea Gentili, 1989
*"Andesiana similis Gentili, 1989

"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 [http://www.leptree.net/Andesiana_habitus] are restricted to Andean South America, from where they were described originally in 1989 in the family Cossidae by their discoverer Patricia Gentili.

ystematics

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 [http://www.leptree.net/] .

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. [* [http://www.publish.csiro.au/paper/IS02006.htm Abstract]

External links

* [http://www.leptree.net/Andesiana_habitus leptree.net]

Nomenclatural notes

Lepindex [http://internt.nhm.ac.uk/jdsml/research-curation/projects/lepindex/] 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 [http://www.ento.csiro.au/gallery/moths/Archaeosespentasema] )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" [http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/abrs/fauna/details.pl?pstrVol=OECOPHORIDAE;pstrTaxa=2006;pstrChecklistMode=2]