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LEPSYS.eu - a consortium for European Lepidoptera Systematists

The aims of LEPSYS.eu are to:

Provide a complete catalogue and systematic framework for the Lepidoptera of the world
Promote collaboration between European Lepidoptera systematists and coordinate applications for joint funding
Promote and coordinate collaboration between European and non-European Lepidoptera systematists
Facilitate the integration of traditional morphological methods with new molecular methods
Catalogue the diversity of Lepidoptera by exploring new methods for species discovery and databasing nomenclature

The systematics of Lepidoptera (the butterflies and moths) has long been in a state of flux. Recent advances in molecular, databasing and internet technologies now make it possible to arrive at a stable classification and a better understanding of the evolutionary history of one of the most species-rich groups of macro-organisms on Earth, the Lepidoptera. Europe is in a unique position to lead this ambition, due to the fact that the European Lepidoptera fauna is the best known in the world, as well the concentration of Lepidoptera systematists in Europe who are the world's leading experts on various groups of Lepidoptera. Europe also has the largest concentration of large museum collections that are rich in type specimens.

In recognition of this, the European Science Foundation has sponsored an Exploratory Workshop entitled "Lepidoptera Evolution, Taxonomy and Systematics", which resulted in the founding of a consortium of European Lepidoptera Systematists (LEPSYS.eu) in April, 2006.

LEPSYS.eu is working in close collaboration with LepTree.net, the Tree of Life project on Lepidoptera.