Lepidoptera

Insects belonging to the order Lepidoptera, which includes butterflies and moths, are termed lepidoptera (both are called lepidopterans). There are about 180,000 species of Lepidoptera known, divided into 126 families and 46 superfamilies, accounting for 10% of all the species of living creatures that have been described. It is one of the most extensively distributed and well recognised insect orders on the planet, with over a billion members. The Lepidoptera exhibit a wide range of variants in their fundamental body shape, which have developed to provide them with benefits in terms of lifestyle and dispersion. Recent estimates indicate that the order may include more species than previously believed, and that it is one of the four most speciose orders, along with the Hymenoptera, Diptera, and Coleoptera, according to these estimates.