biology

Phylledestes

Phylledestes is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Phylledestes rather than just read about it. In short: Phylledestes is an extinct genus of butterfly from the Miocene shales of Florissant, Colorado. It contains only one species, Phylledestes vorax, described from a fossil larva.

Key takeaways

Phylledestes belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Phylledestes to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Phylledestes from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Phylledestes is an extinct genus of butterfly from the Miocene shales of Florissant, Colorado. It contains only one species, Phylledestes vorax, described from a fossil larva. Its family and superfamily placement is uncertain, though it has been proposed to belong to the family Noctuidae of the superfamily Noctuoidea.

See also Prehistoric Lepidoptera Prehistoric insects Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument

References

Further reading Cockerell, T. D. A. (1913). "The fauna of the Florissant, Colorado, shales". American Journal of Science. s4-36 (215): 498–500. Bibcode:1913AmJS...36..498C. doi:10.2475/ajs.s4-36.215.498. ISSN 0002-9599. Kristensen, Niels P. (1998). Handbuch Der Zoologie/Handbook of Zoology: Eine Naturgeschichte Der Stamme Des Tierreiches/a Natural History of the Phyla of the Animal Kingdom, Evolution, ... and Biology Lepidoptera (German ed.). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 3-11-015704-7.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Phylledestes

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Phylledestes claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Phylledestes before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Phylledestes ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Phylledestes

In research: Phylledestes appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Phylledestes in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Phylledestes is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Fossil Lepidoptera, Fossil taxa described in 1907, Miocene insects, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Phylledestes outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Phylledestes in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Phylledestes means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Phylledestes out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Phylledestes in simple terms?

Phylledestes is an extinct genus of butterfly from the Miocene shales of Florissant, Colorado. It contains only one species, Phylledestes vorax, described from a fossil larva.

Why does Phylledestes matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Phylledestes?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Phylledestes.