Phylogeny of the Yponomeuta species (Lepidoptera, Yponomeutidae) and the history of their host plant associations

Abstract

This study presents the results of cladistic analyses of the morphology of 1) the subfamilies of the Yponomeutidae, 2) the genera of the Yponomeutinae, and 3) the species of Yponomeuta Latreille, 1796. The sequential steps in the evolution of the host plant associations, the presumed key factor in the processes of speciation within Yponomeuta, as extrapolated from the cladograms are discussed. The hypothesis that the present-day host plant associations evolved from an ancestral relation with Celastraceae through speciation in allopatry mostly on Euonymus is supported by the underlying study. The biogeographical patterns suggest speciation through dispersion from Australia, the Oriental region, Africa to western Europe.