Data from: A phylogeny of the aquatic moth subfamily Acentropinae (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)

The majority of moths are terrestrial throughout their life cycle. An
exception is the subfamily Acentropinae (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), a
diverse group of aquatic moths comprising nearly 700 species. Acentropinae
represent the largest lineage of moths with at least one life stage
adapted to an aquatic environment. Despite their unique biology, their
evolutionary relationships remain poorly understood. The most
comprehensive study on acentropine phylogeny is over 70 years old and
predates the use of modern analytical methods. Few studies since then have
attempted to reconstruct the phylogeny of Acentropinae, and those that did
are limited in taxon and character/gene sampling. We tested hypotheses of
acentropine relationships by reconstructing a genus-level phylogeny based
on 360 loci and 22 genera of Acentropinae. Our phylogeny provides strong
support for the monophyly of Acentropinae, a basal division between two
tribes, Argyractini Lange, 1956, and Acentropini Stephens, 1836. The tribe
Nymphulini Duponchel is found to be a junior synonym of Acentropini, syn.
nov.. Within this tribe, we find support for some previously defined
family-group clades (the “terrestrial” clade, the “flowing water” clade,
and the Aulacodes clade), and we discuss novel morphological features that
are potential synapomorphies of these clades. Our study provides a
foundation for future research on the ecology and evolution of aquatic
Lepidoptera.