Generic Revision of the Dioptinae (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae): A Cladistic Study of Host Plant Associations and Diurnal Behavior

Dioptinae 是 Notodontidae 或“著名蛾类”的热带亚群，其成员表现出许多独特的特征。首先，迪奥汀是唯一具有颜色鲜艳的翅膀图案的突出物种，其成员在白天而不是晚上飞行。 其次，许多迪奥汀的毛毛虫以有毒植物为食，例如“西番莲”和“胡椒藤”。 相比之下，其他突出物种的幼虫以树木为食，其中大多数不含毒素。最近的研究表明，dioptines 是高度专业化的锯齿动物。 因此，Dioptinae 和蝴蝶之间可以有相似之处，蝴蝶也被认为是从单调的、夜间活动的、类似飞蛾的祖先进化而来的。 该提案的主要目标是根据成虫和幼虫阶段的比较形态来重建 Dioptinae 的进化历史。 然后，Dioptine 系统发育将作为新分类的框架，并将用于研究两个问题：首先，Dioptinae 中有毒植物摄食何时进化？其次，白天飞行的行为是什么时候进化出来的？

Members of the Dioptinae, a tropical subgroup of the Notodontidae or "Prominent moths," exhibit many unique features. First, dioptines are the only prominents with brightly-colored wing patterns, and whose members fly in the day rather than at night. Second, the caterpillars of many dioptines feed on toxic plants such as "passion vine" and "pipevine." In contrast, the larvae of other prominents feed on trees, most of which do not contain toxins. Recent work has shown that dioptines are highly specialized notodontids. Parallels can therefore be drawn between the Dioptinae and the butterflies, which are also thought to have evolved from a drab, nocturnal, moth-like ancestor. The major goal of this proposal is to reconstruct the evolutionary history of the Dioptinae based on comparative morphology of adult and larval stages. The dioptine phylogeny will then serve as a framework for a new classification, and will also be used to examine two questions: First, when did toxic plant-feeding evolve in the Dioptinae? Second, when did day-flying behavior evolve?