Chalcid wasps are insects within the superfamily Chalcidoidea, part of the order Hymenoptera. The superfamily contains some 22,500 known species, and an estimated total diversity of more than 500,000 species, meaning the vast majority have yet to be discovered and described. The name "chalcid" is often confused with the name "chalcidid", though the latter refers strictly to one constituent family, the Chalcididae, rather than the superfamily as a whole; accordingly, most recent publications (e.g.,) use the name "chalcidoid" when referring to members of the superfamily.
The Pteromalidae are a large family of wasps, the majority being parasitoids of other insects. They are found throughout the world in virtually all habitats, and many are important as biological control agents. The oldest known fossil is known from the Early Cretaceous.
The Eurytomidae are a family within the superfamily Chalcidoidea.
The Ormyridae are a small family of parasitic wasps in the superfamily Chalcidoidea. They are either parasitoids or hyperparasitoids on gall-forming insects, primarily cynipid wasps and tephritid flies. The 120 or so species are cosmopolitan, except almost entirely absent from South America.
Trisecodes is a genus of parasitic chalcid wasps of the family Systasidae. The genus was originally placed in Eulophidae, based on a number of morphological features, but molecular evidence suggests that the genus is more closely related to Systasis and Semiotellus. The type species is a parasitoid of a range of Agromyzid leaf-mining flies.
Ablerus is the only genus in the family Azotidae. The genus was created by the American entomologist Leland Ossian Howard in 1894 for the species named in that year by William Harris Ashmead as Centrodora clisiocampae. The genus Azotus was synonymized with Ablerus by Alexandre Arsène Girault in 1913 and Hyatt synonymized Myocnemella with Ablerus in 1994, leaving Ablerus as the sole genus within the subfamily Azotinae. Azotinae was elevated in rank in 2013 to become the monotypic family Azotidae.
Metapelma is a parasitic wasp genus, the only genus in the family Metapelmatidae. They are parasitoids of longhorn-beetle larvae, which are wood-borers.
Megastigmus is a genus of minute wasps. There are more than 134 described species, more than half of which undergo larval development within the seeds of trees and shrubs.
Psyllaephagus is a genus of chalcid wasps. It was named and circumscribed by William Harris Ashmead in 1900. As of 2017, Psyllaephagus contains approximately 245 species.
Conura is a genus of chalcidid wasps in the family Chalcididae, containing more than 300 species described. They are distributed mostly in the New World, especially in the Neotropical region, where 279 species occur. Conura is divided into three subgenera and 63 species groups, which may not form taxonomic entities but reflect patterns of morphology that are useful for focused studies.
Dirhinus is a genus of parasitic wasps in the family Chalcididae. The genus has a worldwide distribution.
Eriaporinae is a subfamily of chalcid wasps in the order Hymenoptera, family Pirenidae. There are 2 genera and 6 described species in Eriaporinae.
Epichrysomallidae is a family of gall-forming wasps associated with fig trees - they make galls in figs, or on leaves or twigs. Once considered a subfamily of Pteromalidae (Epichrysomallinae), this group of genera has been elevated to family rank; they are now known to be more closely related to other gall-forming chalcid wasps than to pteromalids.
Diparidae is a family of chalcid wasps. This group was formerly treated as Diparinae, a subfamily of Pteromalidae.
Pelecinellidae is a small family of chalcidoid wasps, formerly treated as the subfamily Leptofoeninae within Pteromalidae. They, like many small chalcidoids, are brilliantly metallic.
Lyciscidae is a family of chalcid wasps. The genera comprising this family were previously placed in the Cleonyminae subfamily of a paraphyletic Pteromalidae.
Spalangiidae is a family of chalcid wasps that are parasitoids of flies. The two subfamilies were moved from the family Pteromalidae to create this family in 2022. They are now known to be more closely related to the planidial clade of chalcid wasps than to the core Pteromalidae.
Ceidae is a small family of chalcid wasps, previously classified as subfamily Ceinae, in the polyphyletic family Pteromalidae. These wasps are parasitoids of other small insects. Hosts are known only for Cea pulicaris and Spalangiopelta alata.
Cerocephalidae is a small family of chalcid wasps, previously classified as subfamily Cerocephalinae, in the polyphyletic family Pteromalidae. Most species are parasitoids of small wood-boring beetles.
Neanastatidae is a family of chalcid wasps. The genera comprising this family were previously placed in the Neanastatinae subfamily of a paraphyletic Eupelmidae. They are parasitoids or hyperparasitoids of fly or beetle larvae.
