''Ectropis'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

in the

geometer moth The geometer moths are moths belonging to the family Geometridae of the insect order Lepidoptera, the moths and butterflies. Their scientific name derives from the Ancient Greek ''geo'' γεω (derivative form of or "the earth"), and ''metro ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

(Geometridae). They are mostly

paleotropical The Paleotropical Kingdom (Paleotropis) is a floristic kingdom comprising tropical areas of Africa, Asia and Oceania (excluding Australia and New Zealand), as proposed by Ronald Good and Armen Takhtajan. Part of its flora, inherited from the ancien ...

, but also plentiful in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

and extend into Asia. Only one species – or

cryptic species complex In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each ot ...

– ( the engrailed/small engrailed, ''E. bistortata''/''E. crepuscularia'') is found in Europe. There are about 100 known

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

in this genus.

Systematics and taxonomy

All junior synonyms of ''Ectropis'' use ''G. crepuscularia'' as

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specim ...

, and thus, even though this large genus might warrant subgeneric division, no names are presently available. Apart from ''Tephrosia'', established by

Jean Baptiste Boisduval Jean Baptiste Alphonse Déchauffour de Boisduval (24 June 1799 – 30 December 1879) was a French lepidopterist, botanist, and physician. He was one of the most celebrated lepidopterists of France, and was the co-founder of the Société entomo ...

in 1840, the synonyms are also junior homonyms and consequently completely invalid. One of them, ''Coenobita'', was proposed by

Johannes von Nepomuk Franz Xaver Gistel Johannes von Nepomuk Franz Xaver Gistel ''Gistl(11 August 1809 – 9 March 1873) was a German naturalist. He worked at the Museum of Natural History in Regensburg, and wrote on a range of topics under the pseudonyms Garduus and G. Tilesius (an ...

in 1848. Gistl was unaware that

Jacob Hübner Jacob Hübner (20 June 1761 – 13 September 1826, in Augsburg) was a German entomologist. He was the author of ''Sammlung Europäischer Schmetterlinge'' (1796–1805), a founding work of entomology. Scientific career Hübner was the author of ' ...

had described the genus ''Ectropis'', but he knew of Boisduval's ''Tephrosia''. However, Gistl misread the name of the spider genus ''

Theraphosa ''Theraphosa'' is a genus of South American tarantulas that was first described by Tamerlan Thorell in 1870. The Theraphosa spiders are some of the largest known to science, and are usually called Pinkfoot Goliaths in english. it contains three s ...

'' (established by

Charles Athanase Walckenaer Baron Charles Athanase Walckenaer (25 December 1771 – 28 April 1852) was a French civil servant and scientist. Biography Walckenaer was born in Paris and studied at the universities of Oxford and Glasgow. In 1793 he was appointed head of t ...

in 1805) as ''Tephrosia'', and thus came to believe that ''Tephrosia'' was in need of a new name. He chose '' Coenobita'', which to his misfortune had been given to a genus of

hermit crab Hermit crabs are anomuran decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea that have adapted to occupy empty scavenged mollusc shells to protect their fragile exoskeletons. There are over 800 species of hermit crab, most of which possess an as ...

s by

Pierre André Latreille Pierre André Latreille (; 29 November 1762 – 6 February 1833) was a French zoologist, specialising in arthropods. Having trained as a Roman Catholic priest before the French Revolution, Latreille was imprisoned, and only regained his freedom ...

in 1829 already. The other preoccupied synonym, ''Boarmia'', had earlier been given to closely related moths. That group is now included in ''Hypomecis'', which thus has become the

type genus In biological taxonomy, the type genus is the genus which defines a biological family and the root of the family name. Zoological nomenclature According to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, "The name-bearing type of a nominal ...

of the

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

Boarmiini The Boarmiini (also often called ''Cleorini'') are a large tribe of geometer moths in the Ennominae subfamily. Description and systematics This family is sometimes massively expanded, with the closely related Bistonini, Bupalini, Erannini, ...

in the geometer moth

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classifica ...

Ennominae Ennominae is the largest subfamily of the geometer moth family (Geometridae) with some 9,700 described species in 1,100 genera. They are usually a fairly small moths, though some (such as the peppered moth) grow to be considerably large. This sub ...

. ''Ectropis'' is also a member of the Boarmiini.

Selected species

Species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

of ''Ectropis'' include:ABRS (2010), and see references in Savela (2010) Some species formerly included here are now placed elsewhere, e.g. in '' Calcyopa'', '' Myrioblephara'' or '' Parectropis''

Footnotes

References

* * (2010): Australian Faunal Directory &ndash
''Ectropis''
Version of 28 May 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2011. * (2011)
''Ectropis''
Version 2.4, 27 January 2011. Retrieved 21 April 2011. * (2004a)
Butterflies and Moths of the World, Generic Names and their Type-species
&ndash
''Boarmia'' Stephens, 1829
Version of 5 November 2004. Retrieved 21 April 2011. * (2004b)
Butterflies and Moths of the World, Generic Names and their Type-species
&ndash
''Coenobita'' Gistl, 1848
Version of 5 November 2004. Retrieved 21 April 2011. * (2004c)
Butterflies and Moths of the World, Generic Names and their Type-species
&ndash
''Ectropis''
Version of 5 November 2004. Retrieved 21 April 2011. * (2010): ''Lepidoptera and Some Other Life Forms'

Version of 4 July 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2011. {{Taxonbar, from=Q3008607 Boarmiini Taxa named by Michael Denis Taxa named by Ignaz Schiffermüller