Geometer moth

{{short description|Family of insects}}{{redirect|Inchworm}} {{redirect|Geometridae|the mollusc family|Geomitridae}} {{Automatic taxobox | fossil_range = Priabonian to Recent {{fossilrange|35|0}} | image = Chiasma species W IMG 2775.jpg | image_caption = ''Chiasmia'' species from Ennominae | taxon = Geometridae | authority = Leach, 1815 | subdivision_ranks = Subfamilies | subdivision = *Alsophilinae (disputed) *Archiearinae *Desmobathrinae (disputed) *Ennominae *Geometrinae *Larentiinae (but see text) *Oenochrominae *Orthostixinae *Sterrhinae }}

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 {{lang|grc|γεω}} (''{{lang|grc-Latn|geo}}'') (derivative form of {{lang|grc|γῆ}} or {{lang|grc|γαῖα}} "the earth"), and {{lang|grc|μέτρον}} (''{{lang|grc-Latn|métron}}'') "measure" in reference to the way their larvae, or '''inchworms''', appear to measure the earth as they move along in a looping fashion.<ref name="bugguide.net">{{cite web |last1=Robin McLeod |first1=John |last2=Balaban |first2=Jane |last3=Moisset |first3=Beatriz |last4=Entz |first4=Chuck |date=April 27, 2009 |title=Family Geometridae - Geometrid Moths |website=BugGuide |url=http://bugguide.net/node/view/188 |access-date=April 2, 2011}}</ref> Geometridae is a very large family, containing around 23,000 described species;<ref>{{cite web |title=Lepidoptera Barcode of Life |url=http://www.lepbarcoding.org/geometridae/species_checklists.php |access-date=2017-07-11 |archive-date=2017-07-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170712051748/http://www.lepbarcoding.org/geometridae/species_checklists.php |url-status=usurped }}</ref><ref>{{citation |author=Scoble, M. J. |title=Geometrid Moths of the World: A Catalogue (Lepidoptera, Geometridae) |volume=1 and 2 |publisher=CSIRO Publishing and Apollo Books |location=Stenstrup |page=1016 |year=1999 |language=de}}</ref> over 1400 species from six subfamilies are indigenous to North America alone.<ref name="bugguide.net"/> A well-known member is the peppered moth, ''Biston betularia'', which has been the subject of numerous studies in population genetics. Several other geometer moths are notorious pests.

==Caterpillars== The name "Geometridae" ultimately derives from Latin ''{{lang|la|geometra}}'' from Greek {{Lang|el|γεωμέτρης}} ("geometer", "earth-measurer"). This refers to the means of locomotion of the larvae or caterpillars, which lack the full complement of prolegs seen in other caterpillars, with only two or three pairs at the posterior end instead of the usual five pairs. Equipped with appendages at both ends of the body, a caterpillar clasps with its front legs and draws up the hind end, then clasps with the hind end (prolegs) and reaches out for a new front attachment, creating the impression that it measures its journey. The caterpillars are accordingly called "loopers", "spanworms", or "inchworms" after their characteristic looping gait. The cabbage looper and soybean looper are not inchworms but caterpillars of a different family. In many species of geometer moths, the inchworms are about {{convert|25|mm|1|abbr=on}} long. They tend to be green, grey, or brownish and hide from predators by fading into the background or resembling twigs. When disturbed, many inchworms stand erect and motionless on their prolegs, further increasing this resemblance. Some have humps or filaments, or cover themselves in plant material. They are gregarious and are generally smooth. Some eat lichen, flowers, or pollen, while some, such as the Hawaiian species of the genus ''Eupithecia'', are carnivorous. Certain destructive inchworm species are referred to as "cankerworms".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Frank |first1=Steven D. |title=Bad neighbors: urban habitats increase cankerworm damage to non-host understory plants |journal=Urban Ecosystems |date=1 December 2014 |volume=17 |issue=4 |pages=1135–1145 |doi=10.1007/s11252-014-0368-x |bibcode=2014UrbEc..17.1135F |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11252-014-0368-x |language=en |issn=1573-1642|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

In 2019, the first geometrid caterpillar in Baltic amber was discovered by German scientists. Described under ''Eogeometer vadens'', it measured about {{convert|5|mm|in|abbr=on}} and was estimated to be 44 million years old, dating back to the Eocene epoch. It was described as the earliest evidence for the subfamily of ''Ennominae'', particularly the tribe ''Boarmiini''.<ref name="Fischer_al.2019">{{cite journal |last1=Fischer |first1=Thilo C. |last2=Michalski |first2=Artur |last3=Hausmann |first3=Axel |year=2019 |title=Geometrid caterpillar in Eocene Baltic amber (Lepidoptera, Geometridae) |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=9 |issue=1 |article-number=17201 |doi=10.1038/s41598-019-53734-w |pmid=31748672|pmc=6868187 |bibcode=2019NatSR...917201F |doi-access=free }}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed"> File:Looper.webm|thumbtime=0 |Locomotion of a looper File:Geometridae-Dinakarr-10Jun11-DSC 0186.jpg|A geometrid caterpillar camouflaged as a broken twig File:Geometridae locomotion.jpg|Caterpillar locomotion File:Synchlora aerata caterpillar.jpg|''Synchlora aerata'' caterpillar dressed with pieces of flowers as camouflage Geometrid Moths (Geometridae) caterpillar -2.jpg|Geometrid moth (Geometridae) "inchworm" caterpillar Geometrid Moths (Geometridae) caterpillar.jpg|Geometrid moth (Geometridae) "inchworm" caterpillar </gallery>

==Adults== Many geometrids have slender abdomens and broad wings which are usually held flat with the hindwings visible. As such, they appear rather butterfly-like, but in most respects they are typical moths. The majority fly at night. They possess a frenulum to link the wings, and the antennae of the males are often feathered. They tend to blend into the background, often with intricate, wavy patterns on their wings. In some species, females have reduced wings (e.g. winter moth and fall cankerworm).<ref name="bugguide.net"/> Most are of moderate size, about {{convert|3|cm|abbr=on}} in wingspan, but a range of sizes occur, from {{convert|10|-|50|mm|abbr=on}}, and a few (e.g., ''Dysphania'' species) reach an even larger size. They have distinctive paired tympanal organs at the base of the abdomen (these are absent in flightless females).{{cn|date=November 2019}}

<gallery mode="packed"> File:Selenia tetralunaria MHNT ventre.jpg|''Selenia tetralunaria'' species from Ennominae File:Unidentified Moth 0752.jpg|''Scopula'' species File:Tetracis cachexiata 051712.jpg|''Tetracis cachexiata'' in the US state of Ohio File:Fall Cankerworm Moth - Alsophila pometaria, Leesylvania State Park, Woodbridge, Virginia.jpg|''Alsophila pometaria'', wingless adult female </gallery>

==Systematics== {{main|List of geometrid genera}}

Molecular phylogenetic indicate that the Geometridae are composed of eight large clades, which roughly correspond to the traditional subfamilies within the group.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Murillo-Ramos |first1=Leidys |last2=Brehm |first2=Gunnar |last3=Sihvonen |first3=Pasi |last4=Hausmann |first4=Axel |last5=Holm |first5=Sille |last6=Reza Ghanavi |first6=Hamid |last7=Õunap |first7=Erki |last8=Truuverk |first8=Andro |last9=Staude |first9=Hermann |last10=Friedrich |first10=Egbert |last11=Tammaru |first11=Toomas |last12=Wahlberg |first12=Niklas |date=2019-08-27 |title=A comprehensive molecular phylogeny of Geometridae (Lepidoptera) with a focus on enigmatic small subfamilies |journal=PeerJ |language=en |volume=7 |article-number=e7386 |doi=10.7717/peerj.7386 |doi-access=free |issn=2167-8359 |pmc=6716565 |pmid=31523494}}</ref> However, the Oenochrominae are polyphyletic, falling in three clades within the tree.<ref name=":0" />

Traditionally, the Archiearinae were held to sister to the other geometer moth lineages, as their caterpillars have well-developed prolegs.{{Citation needed|date=January 2026}} However, some species that were traditionally placed in the Archiearinae actually appear to belong to other subfamilies; thus, it may be that in a few cases, the prolegs which were originally lost in the ancestral geometer moths re-evolved as an atavism.<ref name="Õunap">{{cite journal |last1=Õunap |first1=Erki |last2=Viidalepp |first2=Jaan |last3=Saarma |first3=Urmas |year=2008 |title=Systematic position of Lythriini revised: transferred from Larentiinae to Sterrhinae (Lepidoptera, Geometridae) |journal=Zoologica Scripta |volume=37 |issue=4 |pages=405–413 |doi=10.1111/j.1463-6409.2008.00327.x |s2cid=85800529}}</ref><ref name="Young">{{cite journal |last=Young |first=Catherine J. |year=2008 |title=Characterisation of the Australian Nacophorini using adult morphology, and phylogeny of the Geometridae based on morphological characters |url=http://www.mapress.com/zootaxa/2008/f/z01736p141f.pdf |journal=Zootaxa |volume=1736 |pages=1–141 |doi=10.11646/zootaxa.1736.1.1}}</ref>

Moreover, later work suggested that the Larentiinae are actually the sister lineage to all other groups in the family, as indicated by their numerous plesiomorphies and DNA sequence data;{{Citation needed|date=January 2026}} they may even be considered a separate family of Geometroidea.{{Citation needed|date=January 2026}}

Molecular phylogenetics with broad taxonomic sampling indicates that a clade consisting of the Sterrhinae and some members of the Oenochrominae is sister to all remaining lineages in the Geometridae.<ref name=":0" />

The placement of the example species follows a 1990 systematic treatment; it may be outdated.

Larentiinae – about 5,800 species, includes the pug moths, mostly temperate, might be a distinct family.<ref name="Õunap"/><ref name="Young"/>

Sterrhinae – about 2,800 species, mostly tropical, might belong to same family as the Larentiinae.<ref name="Õunap"/> * Birch mocha, ''Cyclophora albipunctata'' * False mocha, ''Cyclophora porata'' * Maiden's blush, ''Cyclophora punctaria'' * Riband wave, ''Idaea aversata'' * Small fan-footed wave, ''Idaea biselata'' * Single-dotted wave, ''Idaea dimidiata'' * Small scallop, ''Idaea emarginata'' * ''Idaea filicata'' * Dwarf cream wave, ''Idaea fuscovenosa'' * Rusty wave, ''Idaea inquinata'' * Purple-bordered gold, ''Idaea muricata'' * Bright wave, ''Idaea ochrata'' * Least carpet, ''Idaea rusticata'' * Small dusty wave, ''Idaea seriata'' * Purple-barred yellow, ''Lythria cruentaria'' (formerly in Larentiinae) * Vestal, ''Rhodometra sacraria'' * Common pink-barred, ''Rhodostrophia vibicaria'' * Middle lace border, ''Scopula decorata'' * Cream wave, ''Scopula floslactata'' * Small blood-vein, ''Scopula imitaria'' * Lewes wave, ''Scopula immorata'' * Lesser cream wave, ''Scopula immutata'' * Mullein wave, ''Scopula marginepunctata'' * Zachera moth, ''Chiasmia defixaria'' * Blood-vein, ''Timandra comae'' * Eastern blood-vein, ''Timandra griseata''

Desmobathrinae – pantropical

Geometrinae – emerald moths, about 2,300 named species, most tropical

Archiearinae – twelve<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hemitheini Bruand 1846 - Plazi TreatmentBank |url=https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03B2F2569FFDA4F4E6A7FC5AFC02ABFA/1 |access-date=2024-02-04 |website=treatment.plazi.org |language=en}}</ref> species; holarctic, southern Andes and Tasmania, though the latter some seem to belong to the Ennominae,<ref name="Young"/> larvae have all the prolegs but most are reduced. * Infant, ''Archiearis infans'' (Möschler, 1862) * Scarce infant, ''Leucobrephos brephoides'' (Walker, 1857)

Oenochrominae – in some treatments used as a "wastebin taxon" for genera that are difficult to place in other groups

Alsophilinae – a few genera, defoliators of trees, might belong in the Ennominae, tribe ''Boarmiini''<ref name="Young"/> * March moth, ''Alsophila aescularia'' * Fall cankerworm, ''Alsophila pometaria''

Ennominae – about 9,700 species, including some defoliating pests, global distribution * †''Eogeometer vadens''<ref name="Fischer_al.2019"/>

Geometridae genera ''incertae sedis'' include: * ''Dichromodes'' * ''Homoeoctenia'' * ''Nearcha'' [[File:Hydriomena? protrita.jpg|thumb|right|''Hydriomena? protrita'' holotype forewing]] Fossil Geometridae taxa include: * †''Eogeometer'' Fischer, Michalski & Hausmann, 2019<ref name="Fischer_al.2019"/> * †''Hydriomena? protrita'' Cockerell, 1922 (Priabonian, Florissant Formation, Colorado)<ref name="Cockerell1922">{{cite journal |last1=Cockerell |first1=T. D. A. |year=1922 |title=A fossil Moth from Florissant, Colorado |journal=American Museum Novitates |issue=34 |pages=1–2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sZNPAAAAYAAJ&q=Hydriomena%22+protrita&pg=PR3}}</ref> * †''Geometridites'' Clark et al., 1971

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== * {{cite book |last=Hausmann |first=A. |year=2001 |title=The Geometrid Moths of Europe |volume=1: Introduction. Archiearinae, Orthostixinae, Desmobathrinae, Alsophilinae, Geometrinae -- v. 4. Larentiinae II (Perizomini and Eupitheciini) |publisher=Apollo Books}} * {{cite book |last1=Minet |first1=J. |last2=Scoble |first2=M. J. |year=1999 |chapter=17: The Drepanoid / Geometroid Assemblage |editor-first=N. P. |editor-last=Kristensen |title=Handbuch der Zoologie. Eine Naturgeschichte der Stämme des Tierreiches / Handbook of Zoology. A Natural History of the phyla of the Animal Kingdom. |volume=4: Arthropoda: Insecta. Part 35: Lepidoptera, Moths and Butterflies. Vol. 1: Evolution, Systematics, and Biogeography |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |location=Berlin & New York}} * {{citation |editor-last=Scoble |editor-first=M. J. |year=1999 |title=Geometrid Moths of the World: A Catalogue |publisher=CSIRO Publishing |isbn=0-643-06304-8}}

==External links== * [https://insecta.pro/taxonomy/74 "Family Geometridae"] at ''Insecta.pro'' * [https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN986 ''Anacamptodes pergracilis'', cypress looper] on the University of Florida / Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences ''Featured Creatures'' website * [http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/identification/animals/large-moths/image-gallery/geometridae Geometridae species in New Zealand] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107080439/http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/identification/animals/large-moths/image-gallery/geometridae |date=2015-11-07 }} * [http://naturdata.com/taxa/Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Lepidoptera/Geometridae Geometridae species in Portugal]

Category:Geometer moths Category:Taxa named by William Elford Leach Category:Eocene insects Category:Extant Eocene first appearances Category:Priabonian first appearances