Ditrysia is a clade of lepidopterans that contains both butterflies and a majority of moth species. They are named for the fact that the female has two distinct sexual openings: one for mating, and the other for laying eggs.
About 98% of known Lepidoptera species belong to Ditrysia. As larvae, they initially feed on plants until they grow to become adults and feed on nectar. They function as herbivores, pollinators, and prey in terrestrial ecosystems, and can also be extremely damaging to crops.[1] The Lepidoptera group can be divided into the primitive but paraphyletic "micromoths" and the derived monophyleticApoditrysia, which include mostly larger moths, as well as the butterflies.
Those with a dorsal heart vessel belong in section Cossina.[2] Others, having a ventral heart vessel, belong in section Tineina.[3] While it is difficult to pinpoint the origin of affinities between clades, Tineoidea are found to be useful in understanding the vast diversity in Ditrysia. Obstecomera and Macrolepidoptera are other examples of Ditrysia's subclades.[further explanation needed] Apoditrysia, Obtectomera, and Macrolepidoptera will be considered monophyletic if one or more organisms are either included or excluded from the clade.[4]
Kristensen NP, Skalski AW (1999). "Phylogeny and paleontology". In Kristensen NP (ed.). Lepidoptera: Moths and Butterflies. 1. Evolution, Systematics, and Biogeography. Handbook of Zoology. Vol. IV. Berlin and New York: De Gruyter. pp. 7–25.
Regier JC, Mitter C, Davis DR, Harrison TL, Sohn JC, Cummings MP, Zwick A, Mitter KT (April 2015). "A molecular phylogeny and revised classification for the oldest ditrysian moth lineages (L epidoptera: T ineoidea), with implications for ancestral feeding habits of the mega‐diverse D itrysia". Systematic Entomology. 40 (2): 409–32. doi:10.1111/syen.12110. S2CID85287782.
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