Biosystematics of the Heliothinae (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

The Heliothinae are a group of major economic importance whose systematics have until recently been poorly understood, to the detriment of research on pest management. While much remains to be learned, recent work has established several salient features of heliothine systematics. The two preeminent...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annual review of entomology 1993-01, Vol.38 (1), p.207-225
Main Authors: Mitter, C, Poole, R W, Matthews, M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
BIOSISTEMATICA
BIOSYSTEMATICS
BIOSYSTEMATIQUE
DISTRIBUCION NATURAL
DISTRIBUTION NATURELLE
EVOLUCION
EVOLUTION
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
HELICOVERPA
HELIOTHIS
HOSTS
HOTE
HUESPEDES
Insecta
Invertebrates
Lepidoptera
LITERATURE REVIEWS
NATURAL DISTRIBUTION
NOCTUIDAE
PESTS OF PLANTS
PLAGAS DE PLANTAS
PLANT PESTS
RAVAGEUR DES PLANTES
Systematics. Geographical distribution
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Summary:The Heliothinae are a group of major economic importance whose systematics have until recently been poorly understood, to the detriment of research on pest management. While much remains to be learned, recent work has established several salient features of heliothine systematics. The two preeminent New World pests are not close relatives but belong to very different evolutionary lineages. The tobacco budworm lies within the entirely New World Heliothis virescens group, most species of which are rare and local. In contrast, the corn earworm is an advanced member of the highly vagile, pantropical genus Helicoverpa; among the various pests in this genus, the nearest relative to H. zea is apparently H. armigera. Both pest complexes contain several long unrecognized, often geographically localized and in some cases endangered, nonpest species, which are potentially useful for comparative study and as sources of genetic information and suppression mechanisms. The pests in these complexes are unusual among heliothines in their polyphagous host-plant use and associated life-history traits. The evolutionary origins of such pest life histories, and their bearing on the broader question of host specificity, are subjects for continuing research.
ISSN:0066-4170
1545-4487
DOI:10.1146/annurev.en.38.010193.001231