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Eupithecia

Large genus of geometer moths From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eupithecia
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Eupithecia is the largest genus of moths of the family Geometridae,[3] and the namesake and type genus of tribe Eupitheciini. Species in the genus are, like those of other genera in the tribe, commonly known as pugs.[4] The genus is highly speciose, with over 1400 species, and members of the genus are present in most of the world with exception of Australasia.[3] Roughly a quarter of described Eupithecia species occur in the Neotropical realm, where they have an especially high species diversity in the montane rain forests of the Andes.[5] The genus includes a few agricultural pest species, such as the currant pug moth, Eupithecia assimilata, which is a pest on hops,[6] and the cloaked pug moth, Eupithecia abietaria, which is a cone pest in spruce seed orchards.[7]

Quick Facts Scientific classification, Synonyms ...
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Adult specimens of Eupithecia are typically small, often between 12 and 35 mm, with muted colours, and display a large amount of uniformity between species.[3] As a result, identification of a specimen as part of genus Eupithecia is generally easy, but identifying the exact species is difficult and often reliant on examination of the dissected genitals.[3] Most species share a characteristic resting pose in which the forewings are held flat at a right angle to the body—that is, the costal margins of both forewings form a more-or-less horizontal line—while the hindwings are largely covered by the forewings.[8] They are generally nocturnal.[3]

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Pug moth caterpillar Eupithecia sp.

Of the species where the larval behaviour is known, most feed from the flowers and seeds of their food plants rather than the foliage.[3] Many species have a very specific food plant. The larvae of all but one[9] of the endemic species of Eupithecia from Hawaii are ambush predators of a wide variety of insects and spiders.[10] These ambush predators have raptorial legs, with which they grab prey that comes into contact with their hind end.[10]

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Species

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This is a list of all described species.

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Common pug, Eupithecia miserulata, feeding on Rudbeckia serotina
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Eupithecia , pupa

A

B

C

[17]

D

E

F

G

H

I

J-K

L

M

N

O

P

Q-R

S

T

U-V

W-Z

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Species of unknown status

  • Eupithecia lavicaria Fuchs, 1902 (syn: Eupithecia lavicata Prout, 1914), described from Norway.
  • Eupithecia minutana Treitschke
  • Eupithecia robusta Dietze, 1910

References

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