Noctuidae are one of the world's most diverse, ecologically successful, and economically important animal lineages with over 12,000 species in ∼1,150 genera. We inferred a phylogeny using eight protein-coding genes for the global fauna, greatly expanding upon previous attempts to stabilize Noctuidae higher classification by sampling 341 genera (nearly half represented by their type species) representing 70/76 widely recognized family-group taxa: 20/21 subfamilies, 32/35 tribes, and 18/20 subtribes. We evaluated 17 subfamily-level taxa in detail, discussing adult and larval morphology, life histories, and taxonomic implications of our results. We significantly alter concepts of Acontiinae, Condicinae, Eustrotiinae, Metoponiinae, and Stiriinae. Our results supported recognition of two new subfamilies: Cobubathinae Wagner & Keegan, 2021 subf. nov. and Cropiinae Keegan & Wagner, 2021 subf. nov. Other nomenclatural changes we made are as follows. We moved: ‘Acontia’ viridifera (Hampson, 1910), ‘Azenia’ virida Barnes and McDunnough, 1916, Aleptinoides, Austrazenia, Chalcoecia, Megalodes, and Trogotorna to Chamaecleini in Acontiinae; Apaustis to, and reinstated Emmelia as a valid genus in Acontiinae; Allophyes and Meganephria to Cuculliinae; ‘Plagiomimicus’ navia (Harvey, 1875), Airamia, Alvaradoia, Hypoperigea, Neotarache, and Mesotrosta to Condicinae; Axenus, Azenia, Metaponpneumata, Sexserrata, and Tristyla to Metoponiinae; ‘Paramiana’ canoa (Barnes, 1907) to Noctuinae; Aucha, Cobubatha, and Tripudia to Cobubathinae; Anycteola and Supralathosea to Oncocnemidinae; Cropia to Cropiinae; Desmoloma to Dyopsinae; Eviridemas and Gloanna to Bryophilinae; Fota and Stilbia to Stiriinae; and Copibryophila, Homolagoa, and Tyta to Noctuidae incertae sedis. We conclude with discussion of instances where current understanding of noctuid biogeography and life histories were changed by our results.

Corbiculate bees comprise a distinctive radiation of animals including many familiar species, such as honey bees and bumble bees. The group exhibits a broad variety of morphologies and behaviors, including solitary, social, and cleptoparasitic lifestyles. Since corbiculate bees play a critical role for the interpretation of eusocial behaviors, understanding their phylogeny is crucial to explain patterns and mechanisms of social evolution. Despite advances to unveil corbiculate relationships employing genomic data, the drivers of conflict between molecular and morphological hypotheses are still not fully understood. Morphological datasets favor a single origin for highly eusocial behaviors (i.e., Apini + Meliponini) whereas molecular datasets favor other scenarios (e.g., Bombini + Meliponini). Explanations for this incongruence have been suggested, including quality, quantity, and source of data or methodological issues. In this work we tackled this problem by generating the most extensive morphological dataset for the corbiculate bee species by exploring characters from all body regions, including external and internal adult skeletal anatomy. We produced a matrix with 289 characters for 53 taxa of Apidae, including 24 corbiculate bees. We explored different analyses and optimality criteria including extended implied weights parsimony and two partitioning schemes for Bayesian inferences. We contrasted hypotheses with Bayesian topological tests and conducted analyses to investigate if characters were prone to concerted convergence. Our results are congruent with the conclusions of previous studies based on morphology, recovering Apini sister to Meliponini and both of them together sister to Bombini. Finally, we provide our interpretations on the corbiculate controversy and provide a conciliatory scenario about this issue.

Ashmeadiella Cockerell (Megachilidae: Osmiini) is a bee genus endemic to North America, with greatest richness in arid and Mediterranean regions of the southwestern United States. Species relationships of Ashmeadiella were last analyzed in the 1950s, when Robert Sokal and Charles Michener developed a novel statistical clustering method for classification called numerical taxonomy. To revisit the taxonomic groups they established, we built a molecular phylogeny including all five subgenera. Furthermore, we assembled life history data to lay the foundation for future conservation programs for these bees. We chose three aspects of bee biology that can inform conservation strategies: documenting periods of the year adult bees are flying, assembling data for the flowers each species visits, and compiling the localities and ecoregions where each species is reported. Our results suggest that some Ashmeadiella species may need to be synonymized and that the subgenera should be revised due to non-monophyly. We therefore propose synonymizing the subgenera Cubitognatha and Chilosima with Arogochila. Biological data from published collection records reveal that adult flight periods range from a few months to 11 mo; most species utilize floral resources from multiple plant families; and, over half of the species have ranges extending into the Mojave Desert.

The ambrosia beetle genus Xyleborinus Reitter, 1913 is particularly species rich in Madagascar where the genus exhibits extraordinary morphological variation not seen elsewhere. This study provides the first detailed molecular phylogeny of the genus based on COI, 28S, and CAD gene fragments. Biogeographical and taxonomic hypotheses were tested for the Afrotropical fauna with a particular focus on the Malagasy radiation. Analyses revealed a single colonization of Madagascar no earlier than 8.5–11.0 Ma, indicating an extraordinary recent radiation on the island which has given rise to at least 32 species. Two recolonization events of the African mainland were strongly supported by the molecular data, with several other intraspecific dispersals to the mainland inferred from species distributions. A taxonomic re-evaluation of all Afrotropical Xyleborinus resulted in several taxonomic changes. We found that morphological differences associated with COI divergence higher than 7% indicated different species. Twelve new species are described: Xyleborinus castriformis Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus clivus Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus concavus Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus coronatus Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus diadematus Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus laevipennis Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus magnispinosus Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus margo Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus ntsoui Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus singularis Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., Xyleborinus tuberculatus Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., and Xyleborinus turritus Eliassen & Jordal, sp. nov., all from Madagascar. New synonyms are proposed for Xyleborinus aemulus (Wollaston, 1869) [=Xyleborinus spinifer (Eggers, 1920)], Xyleborinus andrewesi (Blandford, 1896) [=Xyleborinus mimosae (Schedl, 1957)], Xyleborinus dentellus (Schedl, 1953) [=Xyleborinus forcipatus (Schedl, 1957)], Xyleborinus octospinosus (Eggers, 1920) [=Xyleborinus mitosomipennis (Schedl, 1953)], and Xyleborinus similans (Eggers, 1940) [=Xyleborinus sclerocaryae (Schedl, 1962)]. Two species were given new status: Xyleborinus profundus (Schedl, 1961) is elevated from subspecies of Xyleborinus aduncus (Schedl, 1961), and Xyleborinus mitosomus (Schedl, 1965) is reinstated from its previous synonymy with Xyleborinus spinosus (Schaufuss, 1891). Xyleborus gracilipennis Schedl 1957 is reverted to its original genus, and a similar status is confirmed for Xyleborus collarti Eggers 1932. The number of taxonomically valid Xyleborinus species in the Afrotropical region is now 47, which includes 3 adventive species. Revised diagnoses for all species and a key for species identification are provided.