Here I’ll provide a brief background and insight into the wonderful world of Lepidoptera.
Lepidoptera
This image is a cladogram showing the relationships between all major groups of arthropods. Insects belong to Hexapoda (arthropods that have 6 legs). Within insects, the largest Orders (in terms of number of species) all belong to the holometabolous insects.
Moths are thought to have first emerged ~250 million years ago. The order shares a common ancestor with the caddisflies (Trichoptera), which suggests that the very first moths may have been found living in humid forests with their caterpillars associated with damp soil or moss (caddisfly larvae are aquatic).
The very first moths were likely small, scaled flying insects, similar to modern day Micropterix species (right). These early lineages did not feed on nectar like most species, and instead of a proboscis they had mandibles, suitable for feeding on pollen or fern spores.
Lepidoptera are not only diverse in numbers, but also diverse in life history traits. These two factors are undoubted evolutionary linked, with diversity resulting in novel behaviours and vice versa. Around 250 million years of evolution has crafted an astonishing array of feeding habits, ecological niches, and behaviours for the 126 lepidopteran families present today.