Belongs within: Apoditrysia.
The Sesioidea are a group of mostly diurnal moths with prominent ocelli. Brachodidae are small moths that typically have cryptically coloured fore wings (Nielsen & Common 1991). The Sesiidae are often brightly coloured moths with narrowed, partially hyaline wings that bear an overall resemblance to wasps. The hind wing has vein Sc + R1 concealed by a fold in the costa. Larvae are colourless with reduced setae, and mostly feed in the wood or root-stocks of plants. The West African genus Ceritrypetes is a predator of Ceroplastes scale insects (Richards & Davies 1977).
Characters (from Nielsen & Common 1991): Small to medium sized; head usually smooth; ocelli usually present; chaetosemata present or absent; proboscis naked or scaled at base; fore wing with M sometimes retained in cell, chorda sometimes present, CuP usually weak or absent; wing coupling sometimes specialised; abdomen without dorsal spines, S2 of tortricoid type. Larva usually with 3 L setae on prothorax. Pupa with abdominal segments 3–7 movable in male, 3–6 in female and segments 2–7 with one or two dorsal transverse rows of spines; cremaster absent, but often with posterior hooked setae; pupae protruded at ecdysis.
Sesioidea
|--Brachodidae [Atychidae]NC91
| |--Miscera androgynaNC91
| |--SynechodesNC91
| |--EuthorybetaNC91
| `--NigilgiaNC91
| |--N. adjectellaNC91
| `--N. browni Kallies 2013JG19
`--Sesiidae [Sesiicae, Sesiinae]GE05
| i. s.: MelittiaGE05
| Synansphecia muscaeformis (Esper 1783)JP05
| ZenodoxusC90
| Euhagena nebraskaeC90
| PenstemoniaC90
| Albuna oberthuriNC91
| Carmenta chrysophanesNC91
| ParanthreneQI93
| |--P. regaleQI93
| `--P. tabaniformis (Rottemburg 1775)JP05
| PennisetiaNC91
| |--P. hylaeiformis (Laspeyres 1801)JP05
| `--P. ignifluaNC91
| SynanthedonNC91
| |--S. chrysophanesC70
| |--S. scoliaeformis (Borkhausen 1789)JP05
| `--S. tipuliformisNC91
| SesiaM86
| |--S. apiformisL02
| |--S. bombyliformisR26
| |--S. brosiformis [=Sphinx brosiformis]L49
| |--S. ceriaeformis Lucas 1849E12
| |--S. chrysophanes Meyrick 1886M86
| |--S. crabroniformisR26
| |--S. culiciformisL02
| |--S. euglossaeformis Lucas 1849E12
| |--S. ichneumoniformisL49
| |--S. isozona Meyrick 1886M86
| |--S. philanthiformis [incl. Sphinx muscaeformis]L49
| |--S. sirphiformis Lucas 1849E12
| |--S. stomoxiformisL49
| |--S. tenthrediniformis [=Sphinx tenthrediniformis; incl. Sp. empiformis]L49
| `--S. tipuliformis [incl. Synanthedon salmachus]RD77
| Sanninoidea exitiosaRD77
| CeritrypetesRD77
|--Vitacea polistiformisKP19
`--+--Bembecia ichneumoniformis (Denis & Schiffermüller 1775)KP19, JP05
`--Podosesia syringaeKP19
*Type species of generic name indicated
References
[C90] Crawford, C. S. 1990. Scorpiones, Solifugae, and associated desert taxa. In: Dindal, D. L. (ed.) Soil Biology Guide pp. 421–475. John Wiley & Sones: New York.
[C70] Common, I. F. B. 1970. Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers pp. 765–866. Melbourne University Press.
[E12] Evenhuis, N. L. 2012. Publication and dating of the Exploration Scientifique de l’Algérie: Histoire Naturelle des Animaux Articulés (1846–1849) by Pierre Hippolyte Lucas. Zootaxa 3448: 1–61.
[GE05] Grimaldi, D., & M. S. Engel. 2005. Evolution of the Insects. Cambridge University Press: New York.
[JG19] James, D. J., P. T. Green, W. F. Humphreys & J. C. Z. Woinarski. 2019. Endemic species of Christmas Island, Indian Ocean. Records of the Western Australian Museum 34 (2): 55–114.
[JP05] Jungmann, E., & U. Poller. 2005. Neunachweise und Wiederfunde für die Schmetterlingsfauna (Insecta; Lepidoptera) des Altenburger Landes. Mauritiana 19 (2): 317–326.
[KP19] Kawahara, A. Y., D. Plotkin, M. Espeland, K. Meusemann, E. F. A. Toussaint, A. Donath, F. Gimnich, P. B. Frandsen, A. Zwick, M. dos Reis, J. R. Barber, R. S. Peters, S. Liu, X. Zhou, C. Mayer, L. Podsiadlowski, C. Storer, J. E. Yack, B. Misof & J. W. Breinholt. 2019. Phylogenomics reveals the evolutionary timing and pattern of butterflies and moths. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 116 (45): 22657–22663.
[L02] Latreille, P. A. 1802. Histoire Naturelle, générale et particulière des crustacés et des insectes vol. 3. Familles naturelles des genres. F. Dufart: Paris.
[L49] Lucas, H. 1849. Exploration Scientifique de l’Algérie pendant les années 1840, 1841, 1842 publiée par ordre du gouvernement et avec le concours d’une commission académique. Sciences physiques. Zoologie. II. Histoire naturelle des animaux articulés. Troisième partie. Insectes (suite). Imprimerie Nationale: Paris.
[M86] Meyrick, E. 1886. Revision of Australian Lepidoptera. I. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales, series 2, 1 (3): 687–802.
[NC91] Nielsen, E. S., & I. F. B. Common. 1991. Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers 2nd ed. vol. 2 pp. 817–915. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).
[QI93] Quicke, D. L. J., & S. N. Ingram. 1993. Braconine wasps of Australia. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 33 (1): 299–336.
[RD77] Richards, O. W., & R. G. Davies. 1977. Imms’ General Textbook of Entomology 10th ed. vol. 2. Classification and Biology. Chapman and Hall: London.
[R26] Risso, A. 1826. Histoire naturelle des principales productions de l’Europe méridionale et particulièrement de celles des environs de Nice et des Alpes maritimes vol. 5. F.-G. Levrault: Paris.