DOI: 10.5061/dryad.jwstqjqm2
title: Diversity and relevance of non-sphingid moths as pollinators in the Neotropics

description: Understanding the pollination mechanisms of "settling moths"
 (moths from families other than Sphingidae typically perched on corollas
 while feeding on flowers) in the Neotropics is crucial for assessing their
 contributions to plant reproduction and ecosystem resilience. Through
 extensive literature searches on Google Scholar and SCOPUS, this study
 identified 44 relevant studies from an initial pool of 410. These studies
 covered 37 ecoregions across over 30 million km², primarily focusing on
 natural habitats, with Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico as major
 contributors. The research on Neotropical moth pollination has surged
 since 2000, with Noctuoidea, Geometridae, and Pyraloidea as the most cited
 moth groups. Despite the significant progress in documenting moth
 pollination, our assessment of taxonomic resolution revealed a heavy
 reliance on field observations, underscoring the need for collaboration
 with taxonomists to improve species-level identifications and enrich
 ecological interpretations. Our network analysis of interactions between
 37 plant families and 14 nocturnal moth families or higher taxon groups
 indicated a matrix fill of approximately 18.7%, with significant
 nestedness pointing to generalist-specialist dynamics among plant and moth
 families. Modularity analysis identified distinct clusters of
 interactions, suggesting that specific plant and moth families engage in
 compartmentalized relationships shaped by ecological and evolutionary
 factors. Dominant groups, such as Asteraceae and Fabaceae among plants,
 and Erebidae and Noctuidae among moths, played central roles within these
 modules, underscoring their importance in maintaining nocturnal
 pollination networks. These findings emphasize the importance of both
 diverse and dominant pollinator groups in supporting Neotropical
 pollination dynamics. Our work highlights the need for pollinator-centered
 studies, the adoption of standardized methodologies, and deeper
 exploration of exclusive moth pollination to advance understanding of
 plant reproduction across the Neotropics. Future research should aim to
 bridge gaps in species-level identification and further investigate the
 ecological and evolutionary significance of nocturnal pollination across
 diverse environments.
description: Our study focused on phalaenophily, or pollination by “settling
 moths”, (hereafter referred to as moths), encompassing all Lepidoptera
 except hawkmoths (Sphingidae) and butterflies (Papilionoidea). To identify
 relevant studies on pollinating moths, we conducted searches on Google
 Scholar and SCOPUS using the following combinations of terms (number of
 results in brackets): (“Settling moths”) and (Neotropic*) [97],
 (Phalaenophily) and (Neotropic*) [105], (Falenofilia) and (Neotropic*)
 [110]; and on SCOPUS, we employed the search string “Title, Abstract
 & Keywords” with the following terms: pollinat* AND (lepidoptera
 OR moth*) AND (neotrop*) [56], pollinat* AND (lepidoptera OR moths) AND
 (south AND merica) [38], phalaenophily AND (neotropic*) [1], (“Settling
 moths”) and (Neotropic*) [2], (Falenofilia) and (Neotropic*) [0],
 (Noctuidae) and (Neotropic*) and (Pollin*) [1]. We considered studies in
 any language, including Spanish, Portuguese and English. A study was
 included in the analysis only if it specifically mentioned the interaction
 of a moth with a particular plant and, if cited as a “morphospecies”, we
 ensured that the moth was not a hawkmoth [referred to as “small moths”,
 “microlepidoptera”, “settling moths” (English), “polilla” (Spanish),
 “mariposa” (Portuguese)]. We accepted moth identifications as correct
 without requiring independent verification and updated nomenclature only
 when necessary. After conducting searches, all 410
 studies retrieved were meticulously reviewed to pinpoint references to
 moth species involved in flower pollination or visitation. Out of these,
 only 44 studies met the inclusion criteria and were integrated into our
 study. We compiled this information into a comprehensive table, detailing
 various aspects of each study.
description: # Diversity and relevance of non-sphingid moths as pollinators in the
 Neotropics
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.jwstqjqm2](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.jwstqjqm2) ## Description of the data and file structure ### Files and variables #### File: Settling\_moths\_Neotropical.xlsx **Description:**  All data is stored in one Excel file with one sheet. Below there is an explanation of the use and information contained: ##### Variables * Work (number indicate the references from which the information was obtained, listed at the bottom of the table) * Plant species * Taxonomic family of the plant * Moth species/taxon * Taxonomic family of the moth * Country were the study was carried out * Year of the study * Geographic coordinates of the collecting places cited in the work (decimal degrees) * Methodological approach * Observation only (Obs), Observation and identification of pollen grains on the observed species (PolObs), Identification of pollen grains on material collected with the aid of a light trap (PolTra) * study scale: * Community (Com), Family (Fam), Genus (Gen), Species (Sp) * Environment of the collecting points * Natural (Nat), Semi-natural (Seminat), Anthropogenic-Crops (Ant-Cr), Anthropogenic not related to crops (Ant) * Taxonomic resolution of the moths * Family, Genus, Species, Morphospecies * Includes diurnal pollinators? * Yes, No * Was a taxonomist consulted for the identification of the moths? * Yes, No The numbers and complete references for the works considered in this table are provided at the bottom of the table