The Hydroptilidae are a large family of

caddisflies The caddisflies (order Trichoptera) are a group of insects with aquatic larvae and terrestrial adults. There are approximately 14,500 described species, most of which can be divided into the suborders Integripalpia and Annulipalpia on the basis ...

(Trichoptera) with a worldwide distribution. They are commonly known as microcaddisflies or purse-case caddisflies, in reference to two characteristic traits of this family: Hydroptilidae are much smaller than other caddisflies, rarely exceeding in length. Their

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e do not build a protective case until the final

instar An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'' 'form, likeness') is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, which occurs between each moult (''ecdysis'') until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to ...

of their growth. At that time however, they build a typically Purse-shaped case, either portable or stuck to the

substrate Substrate may refer to: Physical layers *Substrate (biology), the natural environment in which an organism lives, or the surface or medium on which an organism grows or is attached ** Substrate (aquatic environment), the earthy material that exi ...

, in which the larva finishes growth and

pupa A pupa (; : pupae) is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their life cycle, the stages th ...

tes.

Systematics and taxonomy

Their

systematic Systematic may refer to: Science * Short for systematic error * Systematic fault * Systematic bias, errors that are introduced by an inaccuracy inherent to the system Economy * Systematic trading, a way of defining trade goals, risk control ...

placement among the caddisflies is still disputed. They are traditionally placed in the

suborder Order () is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between family and class. In biological classification, the order is a taxonomic rank used in the classification of organisms and recognized ...

Spicipalpia The Spicipalpia are a suborder of Trichoptera, the caddisflies. The four families included in this suborder all have the character of pointed maxillary palps in the adults. The larvae of the different families have varying lifestyles, from free-l ...

, which do not seem to be a natural

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

group, but rather an

evolutionary grade A grade is a taxon united by a level of morphological or physiological complexity. The term was coined by British biologist Julian Huxley, to contrast with clade, a strictly phylogenetic unit. Phylogenetics The concept of evolutionary grades ...

of moderately advanced caddisflies. Some authors downrank the Spicipalpia to a

superfamily SUPERFAMILY is a database and search platform of structural and functional annotation for all proteins and genomes. It classifies amino acid sequences into known structural domains, especially into SCOP superfamilies. Domains are functional, str ...

of the more basal

Annulipalpia The Annulipalpia, also known as the "fixed-retreat makers", are a suborder of Trichoptera The caddisflies (order Trichoptera) are a group of insects with aquatic larvae and terrestrial adults. There are approximately 14,500 described species, ...

and call them

Rhyacophiloidea :''"Rhyacophiloidea" may also be the name of the entire "Spicipalpia", when these are treated as a superfamily inside the Annulipalpia.'' The Rhyacophiloidea are a superfamily in the insect order Trichoptera The caddisflies (order Trichoptera ...

(which otherwise refers to a subfamily of suborder Spicipalpia), but recent studies generally rejected this view. More often, the Hydroptilidae are placed in a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

superfamily Hydroptiloidea, either in the Spicipalpia or – probably more appropriately considering the present state of caddisfly

phylogeny A phylogenetic tree or phylogeny is a graphical representation which shows the evolutionary history between a set of species or Taxon, taxa during a specific time.Felsenstein J. (2004). ''Inferring Phylogenies'' Sinauer Associates: Sunderland, M ...

– ''

incertae sedis or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...

'' in the Trichoptera. It may be that the

Glossosomatoidea The Glossosomatoidea are a Taxonomic rank, superfamily of the class Insecta and order Trichoptera, described in 1891 by Hans Daniel Johan Wallengren, Wallengren. References

Insect superfamilies Spicipalpia {{Trichoptera-stub ...

are particularly closely related to the Hydroptilidae; together they might even be closer to the most advanced caddisflies (the tube case caddisflies, Integripalpia) than any other living caddisfly. But this view is almost as disputed as including the Spicipalpia in the Annulipalpia. In any case, were Glossosomatoidea and Hydroptiloidea to be merged into a single superfamily, the older name Hydroptiloidea would apply for the combined group. The peculiarly

apomorph In phylogenetics, an apomorphy (or derived trait) is a novel character or character state that has evolved from its ancestral form (or plesiomorphy). A synapomorphy is an apomorphy shared by two or more taxa and is therefore hypothesized to ha ...

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

'' Palaeagapetus'' and '' Ptilocolepus'' have been separated as

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Ptilocolepinae, while all other genera form the Hydroptilinae family with its multiple

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

s. It is far from certain that the Ptilocolepinae are the

living fossil A living fossil is a Deprecation, deprecated term for an extant taxon that phenotypically resembles related species known only from the fossil record. To be considered a living fossil, the fossil species must be old relative to the time of or ...

s such an arrangement would imply them to be.

Genera

Around 70 genera with at least 1,700 species have been described from this family: ; Hydroptilinae Stephens, 1836 *'' Acanthotrichia'' Wells, 1982 *'' Acritoptila'' Wells, 1982 *'' Agraylea'' Curtis, 1834 *'' Allotrichia'' McLachlan, 1880 *'' Austratrichia'' Wells, 1982 *'' Cyclopsiella'' Kjaerandsen, 1997 *'' Dhatrichia'' Mosely, 1948 *'' Hellyethira'' Neboiss, 1977 *'' Hydroptila'' Dalman, 1819 *'' Hydroptilina'' Martynov, 1934 *'' Jabitrichia'' Wells, 1990 *'' Microptila'' Ris, 1897 *'' Missitrichia'' Wells, 1991 *'' Mulgravia'' Wells, 1982 *'' Oxyethira'' Eaton, 1873 *'' Paroxyethira'' Mosely, 1924 *'' Paucicalcaria'' Mathis & Bowles, 1989 *'' Tangatrichia'' Wells & Andersen, 1995 *'' Tricholeiochiton'' Kloet & Hincks, 1944 *'' Ugandatrichia'' Mosely, 1939 *'' Vietrichia'' Olah, 1989 *'' Wlitrichia'' Kjaerandsen, 1997 *'' Xuthotrichia'' Mosely, 1934 ;Leucotrichiinae Flint, 1970 *'' Abtrichia'' Mosely, 1939 *'' Acostatrichia'' Mosely, 1939 *'' Alisotrichia'' Flint, 1964 *'' Anchitrichia'' Flint, 1970 *'' Ascotrichia'' Flint, 1983 *'' Betrichia'' Mosely, 1939 *'' Celaenotrichia'' Mosely, 1934 *'' Cerasmatrichia'' Flint, Harris & Botosaneanu, 1994 *'' Ceratotrichia'' Flint, 1992 *'' Costatrichia'' Mosely, 1937 *'' Eutonella'' Mueller, 1921 *'' Leucotrichia'' Mosely, 1934 *'' Mejicanotrichia'' Harris & Holzenthal, 1997 *'' Peltopsyche'' Mueller, 1879 *'' Scelobotrichia'' Harris & Bueno-Soria, 1993 *'' Zumatrichia'' Mosely, 1937 ;Neotrichiinae Ross, 1956 *'' Kumanskiella'' Harris & Flint, 1992 *'' Mayatrichia'' Mosely, 1937 *'' Neotrichia'' Morton, 1905 *'' Taraxitrichia'' Flint & Harris, 1991 ;Ochrotrichiinae Marshall, 1979 *'' Angrisanoia'' Özdikmen, 2008 *'' Caledonotrichia'' Sykora, 1967 *'' Maydenoptila'' Neboiss, 1977 *'' Metrichia'' Ross, 1938 *'' Ochrotrichia'' Mosely, 1934 *'' Nothotrichia'' Flint, 1967 *'' Ragatrichia'' Oláh & Johanson, 2011 *'' Rhyacopsyche'' Mueller, 1879 ;Orthotrichiinae Nielsen, 1948 *'' Ithytrichia'' Eaton, 1873 *'' Orthotrichia'' Eaton, 1873 ;Stactobiinae Botosaneanu, 1956 *'' Bredinia'' Flint, 1968 *'' Byrsopteryx'' Flint, 1981 *'' Catoxyethira'' Ulmer, 1912 *'' Chrysotrichia'' Schmid, 1958 *'' Flintiella'' Angrisano, 1995 *'' Niuginitrichia'' Wells, 1990 *'' Orinocotrichia'' Harris, Flint & Holzenthal, 2002 *'' Parastactobia'' Schmid, 1958 *'' Plethus'' Hagen, 1887 *'' Scelotrichia'' Ulmer, 1951 *'' Stactobia'' McLachlan, 1880 *'' Stactobiella'' Martynov, 1924 *'' Tizatetrichia'' Harris, Flint & Holzenthal, 2002 ;''

'' *''† Burminoptila'' Botosaneanu, 1981 *'' Dibusa'' Ross, 1939 *'' Dicaminus'' Mueller, 1879 *''† Electrotrichia'' Ulmer, 1912 *'' Macrostactobia'' Schmid, 1958 *''† Novajerseya'' Botosaneanu, Johnson & P. R. Dillon, 1998 *'' Orphninotrichia'' Mosely, 1934

References

External links

Trichoptera World Checklist
{{Authority control Hydroptilidae, Trichoptera families