Data from: Phylogenomics reveals the evolutionary timing and pattern of butterflies and moths

Butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) are one of the major super-radiations
of insects, comprising nearly 160,000 described extant species. As
herbivores, pollinators, and prey, Lepidoptera play a fundamental role in
almost every terrestrial ecosystem. Lepidoptera are also indicators of
environmental change and serve as model organisms for research on mimicry
and genetics. They have been central to the development of co-evolutionary
hypotheses, such as butterflies with flowering plants, and moths'
evolutionary arms race with echolocating bats. However, these hypotheses
have not been rigorously tested because a robust lepidopteran phylogeny
and timing of evolutionary novelties are lacking. To address these issues,
we inferred a comprehensive phylogeny of Lepidoptera, using the largest
data set assembled for the order (2,098 orthologous protein-coding genes
from 186 species representing nearly all superfamilies), and dated it with
carefully evaluated synapomorphy-based fossils. The oldest members of the
Lepidoptera crown group appeared in the Late Carboniferous (~300 million
years ago [Ma]) and fed on non-vascular land plants. Lepidoptera evolved
the tube-like proboscis in the Middle Triassic and the proboscis allowed
them to acquire nectar from flowering plants. This key morphological
innovation, along with other traits, likely promoted the extraordinary
diversification of superfamily-level lepidopteran crown groups. The
ancestor of butterflies was likely nocturnal, and our results indicate
that butterflies became day-flying in the Late Cretaceous. Moth hearing
organs arose multiple times prior to the evolutionary arms race between
moths and bats, perhaps initially detecting a wide range of sound
frequencies before being co-opted to specifically detect bat sonar.