__NOTOC__ The Azelinini are a

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 ...

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

s in the subfamily

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 s ...

, with many

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), 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 ...

in the Southern Hemisphere, particularly in South America. Several species are found in North America as well. These stocky geometer moths seem to be closely related to other robust tribes, such as the Campaeini,

Ennomini __NOTOC__ The Ennomini are a tribe of geometer moths in the Ennominae subfamily. They are large-bodied and rather nondescript Ennominae, overall showing many similarities to the closely related Azelinini and Nacophorini.Young (2008) Most have ...

, Lithinini and

Nacophorini The Nacophorini are one of the smaller tribes of geometer moths in the subfamily Ennominae. They are the most diverse Ennominae of Australia and are widespread in the Americas. If the African genera tentatively placed herein indeed belong here ...

– all of which might warrant to be subsumed in the Ennomini – the genus ''

Odontopera ''Odontopera'' is a genus of moths in the family Geometridae described by Stephens in 1831. ''Aethiopodes'' is sometimes also included here. Selected species *''Odontopera albiguttulata'' Bastelberger, 1909 *'' Odontopera bidentata'' (Clerck, ...

'', and perhaps the

Caberini Caberini is a tribe of geometrid moths in the family Geometridae. There are at least 50 described species in Caberini. Taxonomic note: *Molecular analyses by Sihvonen et al. (2011) supports separating the tribe Baptini from the Caberini. Resea ...

and Colotoini.Young (2008) The tribe was first described by

William Trowbridge Merrifield Forbes William Trowbridge Merrifield Forbes (April 23, 1885 Westborough – April 12, 1968 Worcester) was an American entomologist who specialized in Lepidoptera and Coleoptera Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the supero ...

in 1948.

Description

They rest with their wings stretched out parallel to the surface, and the hindwings hidden under the forewings unlike most related Ennominae. Though they are among the larger

Geometridae 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 ''metr ...

, they are nonetheless not very conspicuous; the outer third of the forewings is usually conspicuously lighter than the middle third, and at the apical end of the forewing cell there is usually a white or black spot, altogether very much reminiscent of the

's pattern. At least some Azelinini lack the

sensilla A sensillum (plural ''sensilla'') is an arthropod sensory organ protruding from the cuticle of exoskeleton, or sometimes lying within or beneath it. Sensilla appear as small hairs or pegs over an individual's body. Inside each sensillum there ar ...

e at the end of the adults' antennae found in most geometer moths. The foreleg tarsi are relatively short, as in many of their relatives. The hindwing veins Sc and R1 are extensively fused in some Azelinini, reminding of the

Larentiini Larentiini is a tribe of geometer moths under subfamily Larentiinae. The tribe was first described by Philogène Auguste Joseph Duponchel in 1845. Recognized genera * ''Anticlea'' Stephens, 1831 * ''Antilurga'' Herbulot, 1951 * ''Earophila'' Gum ...

which are not very closely related. The characteristic comb of

transverse Transverse may refer to: *Transverse engine, an engine in which the crankshaft is oriented side-to-side relative to the wheels of the vehicle *Transverse flute, a flute that is held horizontally * Transverse force (or ''Euler force''), the tangen ...

setae on the underside of the males' abdominal segment A3, found in many Ennominae, is apparently absent in the Azelinini, as is the associated "scent-brush" on the hindleg

tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it connects ...

e. The male genital's valvae usually have complex autapomorphic modifications (such as a hypertrophied

ampulla An ampulla (; ) was, in Ancient Rome, a small round vessel, usually made of glass and with two handles, used for sacred purposes. The word is used of these in archaeology, and of later flasks, often handle-less and much flatter, for holy water or ...

and gnathos) in this tribe, but the valvula, like in their relatives, is not

distal Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

ly expanded. Unusually, they have both an elongated

uncus The uncus is an anterior extremity of the parahippocampal gyrus. It is separated from the apex of the temporal lobe by a slight fissure called the incisura temporalis (also called rhinal sulcus). Although superficially continuous with the hipp ...

and well-developed

socii The ''socii'' ( in English) or '' foederati'' ( in English) were confederates of Rome and formed one of the three legal denominations in Roman Italy (''Italia'') along with the Roman citizens (''Cives'') and the '' Latini''. The ''Latini'', who ...

;, the

sacculus Sacculus may refer to: * Saccule, a bed of sensory cells in the inner ear * Sacculus (insect antenna anatomy), a sensory organ in the antenna of certain insects * Sacculus (insect genital anatomy), a male genital structure in moths and butterflie ...

is rarely hairy and the saccus' vinculum is generally neither extended nor recurved. Some Azelilini, perhaps all, completely lack the cornuti (spines) on the vesica of the

aedeagus An aedeagus (plural aedeagi) is a reproductive organ of male arthropods through which they secrete sperm from the testes during copulation with a female. It can be thought of as the insect equivalent of a mammal's penis, though the compariso ...

usually found in Lepidoptera. Of the female genitalia, the

ovipositor The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typica ...

is narrow. A robust funnel-shaped

antrum ''This is a disambiguation page for the biological term. For the 2018 horror movie, see Antrum (film)'' In biology, antrum is a general term for a cavity or chamber, which may have specific meaning in reference to certain organs or sites in the bod ...

– the foremost part of the

ostium bursae An ostium (plural ostia) in anatomy is a small opening or orifice. Ostium or ostia may refer to: Human anatomy * Ostium of fallopian tube * Ostium of the uterus (disambiguation) * Ostium primum of the developing heart * Ostium secundum ( foramen o ...

– is present and the interior of the

corpus bursae Corpus is Latin for "body". It may refer to: Linguistics * Text corpus, in linguistics, a large and structured set of texts * Speech corpus, in linguistics, a large set of speech audio files * Corpus linguistics, a branch of linguistics Music * ...

is studded with small spines, while the

ductus bursae In anatomy and physiology, a duct is a circumscribed channel leading from an exocrine gland or organ. Types of ducts Examples include: Duct system As ducts travel from the acinus which generates the fluid to the target, the ducts become larger ...

is delicate and not sclerotized much. Like the Nacophorini, their

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larva, larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterfly, butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawfly ...

s have many

seta In biology, setae (singular seta ; from the Latin word for "bristle") are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms. Animal setae Protostomes Annelid setae are stiff bristles present on the body. T ...

e on the (vestigial)

proleg A proleg is a small, fleshy, stub structure found on the ventral surface of the abdomen of most larval forms of insects of the order Lepidoptera, though they can also be found on other larval insects such as sawflies and a few other types of i ...

s of

abdominal The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso ...

segment A6. And like the Ennomini and Nacophorini, their

pupa A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''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 ...

e have antennal tubercles. The

chorion The chorion is the outermost fetal membrane around the embryo in mammals, birds and reptiles ( amniotes). It develops from an outer fold on the surface of the yolk sac, which lies outside the zona pellucida (in mammals), known as the vitellin ...

cell walls of their eggs are visibly reticulated only around the

micropyle Micropyle may refer to: * Micropyle (botany) a minute opening in the integument of an ovule of a seed plant. * Micropyle (zoology) A micropyle is a pore in the membrane covering the ovum, through which a sperm enters. Micropyles are also found in ...

Selected genera

As numerous ennomine genera have not yet been assigned to a tribe,See references in Savela (2008) the genus list is preliminary. * '' Pero'' Herrich-Schäffer, 1855 * ''

Stenaspilatodes ''Stenaspilatodes'' is a monotypic moth genus in the family Geometridae described by John G. Franclemont and Robert W. Poole in 1972. Its only species, ''Stenaspilatodes antidiscaria'', described by Francis Walker in 1863, is found in the sout ...

'' Franclemont & Poole, 1972 ''

Oratha ''Oratha'' is a genus of moths in the family Geometridae erected by Francis Walker in 1863. References External links * Geometridae {{Nacophorini-stub ...

'', usually placed in the

, might also belong here.

Footnotes

References

* * (2008)
"Characterisation of the Australian Nacophorini using adult morphology, and phylogeny of the Geometridae based on morphological characters"
''

Zootaxa ''Zootaxa'' is a peer-reviewed scientific mega journal for animal taxonomists. It is published by Magnolia Press ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view ...

''. 1736: 1-141. {{Taxonbar, from=Q4832364 Taxa named by William Trowbridge Merrifield Forbes Moth tribes