Tiphiid wasps | |
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Tiphia sp. | |
Scientific classification
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Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Superfamily: | Tiphioidea |
Family: |
Tiphiidae Leach, 1815 |
Subfamilies | |
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The Tiphiidae (also known as tiphiid wasps, [1] flower wasps, [2] [note 1] or tiphiid flower wasps [3]) are a family of large, solitary wasps whose larvae are parasitoids of various beetle larvae, especially those in the superfamily Scarabaeoidea. [4] Until recently, this family contained several additional subfamilies, but multiple studies have independently confirmed that these comprise a separate lineage, and are now classified in the family Thynnidae. [5] [6]
The females of some Brachycistidinae are wingless, and hunt ground-dwelling ( fossorial) beetle larvae. [4] The prey is paralysed with the female's sting, and an egg is laid on it so the wasp larva has a ready supply of food. As some of the ground-dwelling scarab species attacked by tiphiids are pests, some of these wasps are considered beneficial as biological control agents. [7]
Tiphiid genera are classified as follows: [8] [9] [10]
Tiphiid wasps | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Tiphia sp. | |
Scientific classification
![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Superfamily: | Tiphioidea |
Family: |
Tiphiidae Leach, 1815 |
Subfamilies | |
|
The Tiphiidae (also known as tiphiid wasps, [1] flower wasps, [2] [note 1] or tiphiid flower wasps [3]) are a family of large, solitary wasps whose larvae are parasitoids of various beetle larvae, especially those in the superfamily Scarabaeoidea. [4] Until recently, this family contained several additional subfamilies, but multiple studies have independently confirmed that these comprise a separate lineage, and are now classified in the family Thynnidae. [5] [6]
The females of some Brachycistidinae are wingless, and hunt ground-dwelling ( fossorial) beetle larvae. [4] The prey is paralysed with the female's sting, and an egg is laid on it so the wasp larva has a ready supply of food. As some of the ground-dwelling scarab species attacked by tiphiids are pests, some of these wasps are considered beneficial as biological control agents. [7]
Tiphiid genera are classified as follows: [8] [9] [10]