Chiloini

Belongs within: Crambinae.
Contains: Hednota.

Small boring moths

Published 25 June 2025

The snout moths of the Pyraloidea tend not to draw much attention owing to their small size and dull coloration. Nevertheless, there are some species that are noted for their economic impact, causing significant damage to crops and pastures. Among these are various species of the tribe Chiloini.

The Chiloini are one of the tribes making up the ‘narrow-winged clade’ of the subfamily Crambinae. Eleven genera were included in the tribe by Léger et al. (2019). The most distinctive feature of the Chiloini is that the juxta, a structure supporting the aedeagus (or penis) as part of the male genitalia, is bifid and drawn out into a pair of horns. Other characteristic (though not unique) features of the tribe include the presence of a closed cell towards the base of the hind wing, a pair of thick lines called venulae secundae marking the tympanal organs, and a small sclerite called a pseudosaccus near the base of the juxta.

The larvae of Chiloini are borers in the stems of monocotyledons such as grasses. Females glue their eggs to the host plant when laying. Of course, much of the human diet is derived from monocotyledons such as grasses, and a number of chiloins are regarded as significant pests. Examples include the Asiatic rice borer Chilo suppressalis, the spotted borer C. sacchariphagus, and the sugarcane borer Diatraea saccharalis. A number of these species may attack multiple crop species, and several have become widely dispersed outside their native ranges as a result of human activity. Because the larva is naturally secluded within the host plant’s stem, chemical sprays are often of limited effectiveness in controlling borers, and C. suppressalis populations have developed resistance to multiple insecticides. Alternative methods of control may include the introduction of predators and parasitoids that can hunt down the offending larva, entering their bores and attacking them in their lairs.

Systematics of Chiloini

Chiloini [Myelobiini]LLN19
    |--+--Gadira acerellaLLN19, P27
    |  `--HednotaLLN19
    `--+--+--Myelobia smerinthaLLN19
       |  `--Diatraea Guilding 1832LLN19, K70
       |       |--*D. saccharalis (Fabricius 1794) [=Phalaena saccharalis]K70
       |       |--D. crambidoides (Grote 1880)K70
       |       |--D. evanescens Dyar 1917K70
       |       |--D. grandiosella Dyar 1911K70
       |       |--D. lineolata (Walker 1856)K70
       |       |--D. lisetta (Dyar 1909)K70
       |       `--D. venosalis Dyar 1917K70
       `--Chilo Zincken 1817LLN19
            |--*C. phragmitella (Hübner 1805) [=Tinea phragmitella]K70
            |--C. auriciliusMHG04
            |--C. erianthalis Capps 1963K70
            |--C. funerellus Hampson 1901H01
            |--C. idalis (Fernald 1896)K70
            |--C. infuscatellusVHK02
            |--C. lativittalisP27
            |--C. partellusMHG04
            |--C. plejadellus Zincken 1821K70
            |--C. quirimbellusLLN19
            |--C. sacchariphagusMHG04
            |--C. suppressalisS91
            `--C. terrenellusMHG04

Chiloini incertae sedis:
  ChilandrusLLN19
  ChiquaLLN19
  EschataLLN19
  LeonardoLLN19
  MalgasochiloLLN19
  Tauroscopa gorgopisLLN19, P27
  Epina Walker 1866K70
    |--*E. dichromella Walker 1866K70
    `--E. alleni (Fernald 1888)K70
  Hemiplatytes Barnes & Benjamin 1924K70
    |--*H. epia (Dyar 1912) [=Diatraea epia]L70
    |--H. parallela (Kearfott 1908)K70
    `--H. prosenes (Dyar 1912)K70

*Type species of generic name indicated

References

[H01] Hampson, G. F. 1901. The Lepidoptera-Phalaenae of the Bahamas. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, series 7, 7: 246–261.

[K70] Klots, A. B. 1970. North American Crambinae: notes on the tribe Chiloini and a revision of the genera Eoreuma Ely and Xubida Schaus (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). Journal of the New York Entomological Society 78 (2): 100–120.

[LLN19] Léger, T., B. Landry & M. Nuss. 2019. Phylogeny, character evolution and tribal classification in Crambinae and Scopariinae (Lepidoptera, Crambidae). Systematic Entomology 44: 757–776.

[MHG04] Maynard, G. V., J. G. Hamilton & J. F. Grimshaw. 2004. Quarantine—phytosanitary, sanitary and incursion management: an Australian entomological perspective. Australian Journal of Entomology 43 (3): 318–328.

[P27] Philpott, A. 1927. The maxillae in the Lepidoptera. Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute 57: 721–746.

[S91] Southcott, R. V. 1991. A further revision of Charletonia (Acarina: Erythraeidae) based on larvae, protonymphs and deutonymphs. Invertebrate Taxonomy 5: 61–131.

[VHK02] Verma, M., M. Hayat & S. I. Kazmi. 2002. The species of Elasmus from India (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Eulophidae). Oriental Insects 36: 245–306.