Achlyodidini
Encyclopedia
The Achlyodidini are a tribe
in the skipper butterfly subfamily Pyrginae. Many species
of them are notable for their (by skipper butterfly standards) gaudy colors and the unusually-shaped wings, which look as if the forewing tips have been squarely cut off. They are only found in the Americas
, with few occurring out of tropical areas.
Formerly, when only 4 tribes of Pyrginae were recognized, they were included in the Pyrgini
, which at that time contained a massive number of genera
. But the Pyrginae have since been reorganized to make them and their tribes monophyletic, leading most modern authors to treat the Achlyodidini as distinct tribe. However, they are the tribe most closely related to the Pyrgini sensu stricto, and the old circumscription of the Pyrgini was by and large just as correct from a phylogenetic perspective.
The other two tribes of the Pyrgini sensu lato – the Carcharodini
and Erynnini
– are not as strikingly autapomorphic as the Achlyodidini, but they are more distant relatives of the Pyrgini sensu stricto than the present tribe. Thus, they cannot be included in the Pyrgini without also including the Achlyodidini, and consequently the four-way split of the Pyrgini is more informative than to lump half the known evolutionary diversity of Pyrginae into one huge tribe.
Tribe (biology)
In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...
in the skipper butterfly subfamily Pyrginae. Many species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of them are notable for their (by skipper butterfly standards) gaudy colors and the unusually-shaped wings, which look as if the forewing tips have been squarely cut off. They are only found in the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
, with few occurring out of tropical areas.
Formerly, when only 4 tribes of Pyrginae were recognized, they were included in the Pyrgini
Pyrgini
The Pyrgini are a tribe in the skipper butterfly subfamily Pyrginae. Formerly, when only 4 tribes of Pyrginae were recognized, the Pyrgini contained the largest number of genera among these. But this overly wide delimitation has since turned out to be paraphyletic.One of the traditional Pyrginae...
, which at that time contained a massive number of genera
Genera
Genera is a commercial operating system and development environment for Lisp machines developed by Symbolics. It is essentially a fork of an earlier operating system originating on the MIT AI Lab's Lisp machines which Symbolics had used in common with LMI and Texas Instruments...
. But the Pyrginae have since been reorganized to make them and their tribes monophyletic, leading most modern authors to treat the Achlyodidini as distinct tribe. However, they are the tribe most closely related to the Pyrgini sensu stricto, and the old circumscription of the Pyrgini was by and large just as correct from a phylogenetic perspective.
The other two tribes of the Pyrgini sensu lato – the Carcharodini
Carcharodini
The Carcharodini are a tribe in the skipper butterfly subfamily Pyrginae. They are a very diverse but quite plesiomorphic and inconspicuous group distributed throughout the Tropics....
and Erynnini
Erynnini
The Erynnini are a tribe in the skipper butterfly subfamily Pyrginae. They are a moderately diverse but quite plesiomorphic and inconspicuous group, and except for the Holarctic species of the type genus Erynnis occur only in the Neotropics....
– are not as strikingly autapomorphic as the Achlyodidini, but they are more distant relatives of the Pyrgini sensu stricto than the present tribe. Thus, they cannot be included in the Pyrgini without also including the Achlyodidini, and consequently the four-way split of the Pyrgini is more informative than to lump half the known evolutionary diversity of Pyrginae into one huge tribe.
Genera
The genera are listed in the presumed phylogenetic sequence:- AchlyodesAchlyodesAchlyodes is a genus of skippers.The genus has only few species:* Achlyodes busirus * Achlyodes pallida * Achlyodes minna Evans, 1953* Achlyodes mithridates...
- Aethilla Hewitson, 1868
- DoberesDoberesDoberes is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- EantisEantisEantis is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
– sicklewings - AtarnesAtarnesAtarnes is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- CharidiaCharidiaCharidia is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- ParamimusParamimusParamimus is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- MilanionMilanionMilanion is a genus of skipper butterflies....
- HaemactisHaemactisHaemactis is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- GindanesGindanesGindanes is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- PythonidesPythonidesPythonides is a genus of skippers....
- QuadrusQuadrusQuadrus is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- OuleusOuleusOuleus is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...
- ZeraZeraZera is a genus of skippers in the family Hesperiidae.-References:*...