Theclinae
Hairstreaks
Andrew V. Z. Brower
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close boxIntroduction
The hairstreaks are an extremely diverse lycaenid subfamily, well-represented in all regions and particularly in the tropics. Many species possess "tails" on the apices of the hindwings that authors have hypothesized act as a false head, distracting the attention of predators away from the more vital body parts (see Robbins, 1980, 1981).
Discussion of Phylogenetic Relationships
The hypothesis of relationships among tribes is based on Eliot's (1973) intuitive phylogeny. Note that Eliot viewed Theclinae as a subfamily at that point (he demoted the group to a tribe in Corbet et al. 1992). According to R. K. Robbins (pers. comm., 2008), Eliot's 1992 reduction in rank of the hairstreaks, blues and coppers has not been adopted by most lycaenid researchers, and so these taxa are here ranked as a clade of subfamilies.
References
Corbet, A. S., Pendlebury, H. M. & Eliot, J. N. 1992 The butterflies of the Malay Peninsula. Kuala Lumpur: Malayan Nature Society.
Eliot, J. N. 1973 The higher classification of the Lycaenidae (Lepidoptera): a tentative arrangement. Bull. Br. Mus. Nat. Hist. (Ent.) 28, 371-505, 6 pls.
Robbins, R. K. 1980 The lycaenid "false head" hypothesis: historical review and quantitative analysis. J. Lepid. Soc. 34, 194-208.
Robbins, R. K. 1981 The "false head" hypothesis: predation and wing pattern variation of lycaenid butterflies. Amer. Nat. 118, 770-775.
Title Illustrations
| Location | Abbeville County, South Carolina, USA |
|---|---|
| Specimen Condition | Live Specimen |
| Source | juniper hairstreak |
| Source Collection | Flickr |
| Image Use |
 This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License - Version 2.0.
|
| Copyright | © 2004 kim fleming |
| Scientific Name | Strymon melinus |
|---|---|
| Specimen Condition | Live Specimen |
| Source | Gray Hairstreak (Strymon melinus) |
| Source Collection | Flickr |
| Image Use |
This media file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License - Version 2.0.
|
| Copyright | © 2006 Lollie Dot Com |
About This Page
Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Andrew V. Z. Brower at
Page copyright © 2007
Page: Tree of Life
Theclinae . Hairstreaks.
Authored by
Andrew V. Z. Brower.
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- First online 02 November 2007
- Content changed 24 April 2008
Citing this page:
Brower, Andrew V. Z. 2008. Theclinae . Hairstreaks. Version 24 April 2008 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Theclinae/106372/2008.04.24 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/
