The Epicopeiidae: Phylogeny and a redefinition, with the description of new taxa (Lepidoptera: Drepanoidea)

Abstract

Amana banghaasi Hering, a poorly known species from central China (described in the “Epiplemidae”, now Epipleminae [Uraniidae]), is transferred to a new genus, Deuveia, which belongs to the Epicopeiidae (Drepanoidea). This taxon turns out to be the sister-group of a clade consisting of all other members of the family. Another new epicopeiid genus, Burmeia, is proposed for B. leesi n. sp., a species described from northern Burma. Quite clearly, there is a sister-group relationship between Burmeia and Psychostrophia, but these genera differ markedly in certain characters, for example in the course of vein M2: in both pairs of wings, M2 arises distinctly closer to M3 than to M1 in Burmeia, unlike the condition found in all other Epicopeiidae. A key is provided for the identification of the species in these two genera. A manually derived cladogram may correctly sum up the phylogeny of the Epicopeiidae, a family now composed of nine genera. It matches exactly one of the two most parsimonious trees found with computer programs such as Hennig86 or PAUP (the second tree of minimal length being similar, except for the affinities of the monotypic genus Amana). For the software-based analyses, all the 34 (imaginal) characters taken into account were polarized and given equal weight. The “robustness” of each branch of the preferred cladogram was assessed by calculating the corresponding Bremer’s support index, but also with non-quantifiable criteria. Six genera may form a clade, within which the following sister-group relationships can be considered well established: Chatamla/Parabraxas, Nossa/Epicopeia, and Schistomitra/Nossa + Epicopeia (whereas Chatamla + Parabraxas is only tentatively regarded as sister to Amana). Owing to the basal position of Deuveia within the Epicopeiidae, the morphology of this genus is of great significance to identify the autapomorphies of the Drepanoidea and those of the Epicopeiidae (respectively 5 and 12 in number at this stage of the investigations). With regard to the Drepanidae, an apomorphy of the male genitalia can be added to the definition of the family, whose basalmost lineage probably is the subfamily Cyclidiinae. The composition of the Thyatirinae is briefly discussed. © 2002 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.