The Monotrysia are a group of moths in the lepidopteran order, not currently considered to be a natural group or clade. The group is so named because the female has a single genital opening for mating and laying eggs, in contrast to the rest of the Lepidoptera (Ditrysia), which have two female reproductive openings.Dugdale, J.S. (1974). Female genital classification in the classification of Lepidoptera. New Zealand Journal of Entomology, 1(2): 127-146. pdf Later classifications used Monotrysia in a narrower sense for the nonditrysian Heteroneura, but this group was also found to be paraphyletic with respect to Ditrysia. Apart from the recently discovered family Andesianidae,Davis, D. R. and Gentili, P. (2003). Andesianidae, a new family of monotrysian moths (Lepidoptera: Andesianoidea) from South America. Invertebrate Systematics, 17: 15-26.Abstract most of the group consists of small, relatively understudied species.

See also

References

Further reading Davis D. R. (1999). The Monotrysian Heteroneura. Pages 65–90 in: Lepidoptera: Moths and Butterflies. 1. Evolution, Systematics, and Biogeography. Handbook of Zoology Vol. IV, Part 35. N. P. Kristensen, ed. De Gruyter, Berlin and New York.

External links Neolepidoptera