Esperia (moth)

Esperia
Mating adults of Esperia sulphurella
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Oecophoridae
Subfamily: Oecophorinae
Genus: Esperia
Hübner, 1825
Synonyms

Numerous, see text

Esperia is a genus of the concealer moth family (Oecophoridae). Among these, it belongs to subfamily Oecophorinae. Most authors include Dasycera here, though approaches that generally follow a "splitting" approach sometimes do not.[1]

The type species of Esperia (originally described as Tinea orbonella, now E. sulphurella) has some differences versus the type species of Dasycera (originally described as T. aemulella, now E. oliviella), but these are slight and at present it is not determined whether they justify the maintenance of two small genera versus a more comprehensive genus containing two subgenera.[2]

  1. ^ FE (2009a,b), and see references in Savela (2003)
  2. ^ Pitkin & Jenkins (2004a,b), FE (2009a,b), and see references in Savela (2003)