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Boreads

For the genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
of noctuid moth
Moth

A moth is an insect closely related to the butterfly, both being of the Order Lepidoptera. The differences between butterflies and moths are more than just taxonomy....
s, see Zethes (moth).

The Boreads, in Greek mythology

Greek mythology

Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the Ancient Greece concerning their List of Greek mythological figures#Immortals and Greek hero cult, Cosmology#Metaphysical cosmology, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices....
, were Calais and Zetes (also Zethes). They were the sons of Boreas and Oreithyia

Oreithyia

In Greek mythology, Oreithyia was the daughter of King Erechtheus of Athens, Greece and his wife, Praxithea. Her brothers were Cecrops, Pandorus, and Metion, and her sisters were Procris, Creusa, and Chthonia....
, daughter of King Erechtheus

Erechtheus

Erechtheus in Greek mythology was the name of an archaic king of Athens, the re-founder of the polis and a double at Athens for Poseidon, as "Poseidon Erechtheus"....
of Athens

Athens

Athens , the Capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the List of cities by time of continuous habitation, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years....
. Due to being sons of the north wind they were able to fly, having wings either on their feet or backs.

They were Argonauts

Argonauts

In Greek mythology, the Argonauts were a band of heroes who, in the years before the Trojan War, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden Fleece....
and played a particularly vital role in the rescue of Phineas

Phineas

In Greek mythology, Phineas was a King of Thrace.The name 'Phineas' or 'Phineus' may be associated with the ancient city of Phinea on the Thracian Bosphorus....
from the harpies.

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The Boreads, in Greek mythology

Greek mythology

Oreithyia

Erechtheus

Erechtheus in Greek mythology was the name of an archaic king of Athens, the re-founder of the polis and a double at Athens for Poseidon, as "Poseidon Erechtheus"....
of Athens

Athens

Argonauts

Phineas

In Greek mythology, Phineas was a King of Thrace.The name 'Phineas' or 'Phineus' may be associated with the ancient city of Phinea on the Thracian Bosphorus....
from the harpies. They succeeded in driving the monsters away but did not kill them, at a request from the goddess of the rainbow, Iris

Iris (mythology)

In Greek mythology, Iris is the personification of the rainbow and messenger of the gods. As the sun unites Earth and heaven, Iris links the gods to humanity....
, who promised that Phineas would not be bothered by the harpies again. As thanks, Phineas told the Argonauts how to pass the Symplegades

Symplegades

In Greek mythology, the Symplegades , also known as the Cyanean Rocks or Clashing Rocks, were a pair of rocks at the Bosporus that clashed together randomly....
. It is said that the Boreads were turned back by Iris at the Strophades. The islands' name, meaning "Islands of Turning", refers to this event.

Their death was said to be caused by Heracles

Heracles

In Greek mythology, Heracles or Herakles meaning "glory of Hera", or "Glorious through Hera" Alcides or Alcaeus " was a hero, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, foster son of Amphitryon and great-grandson of Perseus....
on Tenos in revenge for when they convinced the Argonauts to leave him behind as he searched for Hylas

Hylas

In Greek mythology, Hylas was the son of King Theiodamas of the Dryopians. Other sources such as Ovid state that Hylas' father was Heracles and his mother was the nymph Melite, or that his mother was the wife of Theiodamus, whose adulterous affair with Heracles caused the war between him and her husband....
.

Other sources imply that the sons of Boreas died chasing the harpies, as it was fated that they would perish if they failed to catch those they pursued. In some versions, the harpies drop into the sea from exhaustion, and so their pursuers fall as well.

Sources

Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica I, 211-223.
Apollodorus, Bibliotheke I, ix, 21; III, xv, 2.