Bombycoidea is a superfamily of

moths Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (suborder Rhopalocera) a ...

, including the silk moths, giant silk moths, sphinx moths, saturniids, and relatives. The superfamily

Lasiocampoidea The Lasiocampidae are a family of moths also known as eggars, tent caterpillars, snout moths (although this also refers to the Pyralidae), or lappet moths. Over 2,000 species occur worldwide, and probably not all have been named or studied. It i ...

is a close relative and was historically sometimes merged in this group. After many years of debate and shifting taxonomies, the most recent classifications treat the superfamily as containing 10 constituent families.

Characteristics

Bombycoid larvae often exhibit horns.''Firefly Encyclopedia of Insects and Spiders'', edited by Christopher O'Toole, , 2002 In the adult stage they are typically large, and include the largest moths in the world.

Families

Bombycoidea includes the following families: * Anthelidae *

Apatelodidae Apatelodidae, the American silkworm moths, is a family of insects in the order Lepidoptera. They are a family within the superfamily Bombycoidea, though they have in the past been considered a subfamily of Bombycidae. Distribution Species ar ...

* Bombycidae * Brahmaeidae (syn. Lemoniidae) * Carthaeidae *

Endromidae Endromidae is a family of moths consisting of 16 genera with 72 species. This relictual family is related to the families Carthaeidae, Anthelidae, and Phiditiidae as part of the bombycine group "CAPOPEM". Genera The following genera are re ...

(syn. Mirinidae) *

Eupterotidae Eupterotidae is a family of insects in the order Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) or lepidopterans is an order (biology), order of winged insects which includes butterflies and moths. About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera have been described, ...

* Phiditiidae *

Saturniidae Saturniidae, members of which are commonly named the saturniids, is a family of Lepidoptera with an estimated 2,300 described species. The family contains some of the largest species of moths in the world. Notable members include the emperor m ...

Sphingidae The Sphingidae are a family of moths commonly called sphinx moths, also colloquially known as hawk moths, with many of their caterpillars known as hornworms. It includes about 1,450 species. It is best represented in the tropics, but species ar ...

References

Lepidoptera superfamilies Macroheterocera {{Bombycoidea-stub