A Bit About Moths 3.

How many sorts are there?

Worldwide there are about 180,000 species that have been named and in the UK some 2,600 types of Lepidoptera have been identified, of which less than 70 are butterflies. Moths, in turn, are broken down into the three major categories of; Butterflies, Macrolepidoptera & Microlepidoptera. The Macros, as their name suggests, tend to be the larger moths and Micros the smaller ones - although, for historical reasons, there is not a direct link between size and whether it is included in the Micro or Macro sections.
In terms of Evolution, butterflies fall in the middle of the Lepidoptera range rather than at one end or the other. The taxonomical (evolutionary) order is Micros, Butterflies and then Macros. I couldn't find any pattern regarding day-flying and non-day-flying moths - they seem to be sprinkled around the whole spectrum of moths. To slightly complicate that simple scheme - the last five familes of the Micros are considered 'honorary Macros' because of their size !