Abstract
The Eurrhypini comprises about 200 known species of crambid moths, united by male-genitalic modifications that apparently function in stridulatory courtship. The most diverse Neotropical genus is Cliniodes Guenée, which belongs to a putative clade of leaf-feeders on Thymelaeaceae. Except for nomenclatural changes, Cliniodes has not been treated since Munroe’s new descriptions in 1964; many species delimitations have been based on insufficient evidence and need to be tested with more specimens and characters. The tribe as a whole has enjoyed only generic or regional reviews. Cliniodes includes at least one species complex (the C. saburralis-group) and other members that may be useful for biogeographical hypothesis-testing. Accordingly, I am revising the genus and reconstructing the phylogeny of Cliniodes and its relatives, using holomorphological and molecular evidence. The immediate goals are 1) to revise the known and describe new species, 2) to investigate the monophyly of the genus with respect to other Neotropical and Palaeotropical genera, 3) to test a basic division between species with complex and simple maculation, and 4) to hypothesize its sister-group(s). The overarching goal is to produce a transparent, maximally-informative, predictive classification, which simultaneously tests and conveys all attributes of a little-known taxon. This work will abet further work on related Crambidae, including generic revisions, extension of the classification, identification, chemical ecology, and natural-history studies.
