| Philanthidae | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Cerceris | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Superfamily: | Apoidea |
| Family: | Philanthidae |
| Tribes and genera | |
Aphilanthopini: Cercerini: Philanthini: Pseudoscoliini: | |
Philanthidae is one of the largest families of wasp in the superfamily Apoidea, with 1167 species in 8 genera, most of which are Cerceris . [1] [2] [3]
Historically, this group has frequently been accorded family status. [4] Later interpretations include status as a subfamily of a broadly-defined Sphecidae [1] or Crabronidae. Subsequent revision of the superfamily Apoidea has elevated the group back to family status. [5]
The family consists of solitary, predatory wasps, each genus having its own distinct and consistent prey preferences. The adult females dig tunnels in the ground for nesting.[ citation needed ]
As with all other apoid wasps, the larvae are carnivorous; females hunt for prey on which to lays their eggs, mass provisioning the nest cells with paralyzed, living prey that the larva feeds upon after it hatches from the egg, as seen in the species Philanthus gibbosus . [6]
The superfamily Apoidea is a major group within the Hymenoptera, which includes two traditionally recognized lineages, the "sphecoid" wasps, and the bees. Molecular phylogeny demonstrates that the bees arose from within the traditional "Crabronidae", so that grouping is paraphyletic, and this has led to a reclassification to produce monophyletic families.
Apocrita is a suborder of insects in the order Hymenoptera. It includes wasps, bees, and ants, and consists of many families. It contains the most advanced hymenopterans and is distinguished from Symphyta by the narrow "waist" (petiole) formed between the first two segments of the actual abdomen; the first abdominal segment is fused to the thorax, and is called the propodeum. Therefore, it is general practice, when discussing the body of an apocritan in a technical sense, to refer to the mesosoma and metasoma rather than the "thorax" and "abdomen", respectively. The evolution of a constricted waist was an important adaption for the parasitoid lifestyle of the ancestral apocritan, allowing more maneuverability of the female's ovipositor. The ovipositor either extends freely or is retracted, and may be developed into a stinger for both defense and paralyzing prey. Larvae are legless and blind, and either feed inside a host or in a nest cell provisioned by their mothers.
Vespoidea is a superfamily of wasps in the order Hymenoptera. Vespoidea includes wasps with a large variety of lifestyles including eusocial, social, and solitary habits, predators, scavengers, parasitoids, and some herbivores.
The Sphecidae are a cosmopolitan family of wasps of the suborder Apocrita that includes sand wasps, mud daubers, and other thread-waisted wasps.
The Crabronidae are a large paraphyletic group of wasps, including nearly all of the species formerly comprising the now-defunct superfamily Sphecoidea. It collectively includes well over 200 genera, containing well over 9000 species. Crabronids were originally a part of the Sphecidae, but the latter name is now restricted to a separate family based on what was once the subfamily Sphecinae. Several of the subfamilies of the Crabronidae are often treated as families in their own right, as is true of the most recent phylogenies.
Cerceris is a genus of wasps in the family Philanthidae. It is the largest genus in the family, with 876 described species and 169 subspecies. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, with species on every continent.
Heterogynaidae is a minor and disputed lineage of small spheciform wasps occurring in Madagascar, Botswana, Turkmenistan, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and the Eastern Mediterranean area. The majority are dark in color and range in size from approximately 1.5 to 5.0 mm. Most specimens have been collected in arid climates, but one species from Madagascar is known to occur in a humid forest habitat. Although males have functional wings, heterogynaid females are typically brachypterous, a trait which is unique among spheciform wasps. Wing venation is reduced in both sexes. All species are diurnal, with the exception of H. nocticola. Other aspects of their biology are completely unknown, but details of their morphology have prompted researchers to hypothesize that they may be non-fossorial parasitoids adapted to hunt in tight spaces, such as under tree bark. This is speculative and has not yet been confirmed by actual observations of behavior. It is also possible that modifications of the female metasomal tergum VI and gonostyli may represent a unique prey transport mechanism, but this is also unconfirmed.
Astatidae is a cosmopolitan family of solitary wasps, peculiar for their males having very large compound eyes that broadly meet at the top of the head. The largest genus in this family is Astata, with about half of more than 160 species in the family.
Philanthus gibbosus, the hump-backed beewolf, is a species of bee-hunting wasp and is the most common and widespread member of the genus in North America. P. gibbosus is of the order Hymenoptera and the genus Philanthus. It is native to the Midwestern United States and the western Appalachians. P. gibbosus are often observed to visit flowers and other plants in search of insect prey to feed their young. The prey that P. gibbosus catches is then coated in a layer of pollen and fed to the young wasps.
Pemphredonidae is a family of aphid wasps formerly treated as the subfamily Pemphredoninae. There are 19 genera and 556 described species in the family.
Cerceris fumipennis, the only species of buprestid-hunting Philanthidae occurring in eastern North America, is found throughout the continental United States east of the Rockies: from Texas and Florida north to Maine, Wyoming, and into Canada. The wasps most often nest in open areas of hard-packed sandy soil surrounded by woody habitat suitable for their buprestid beetle prey.
Astata is a cosmopolitan genus of solitary predatory wasps in the family Astatidae. They are known to prey on adults and nymphs of Pentatomidae. Astata is the largest genus in this subfamily, and is identified by features of its wing venation. The males of this genus and the related genus Dryudella have very large compound eyes that broadly meet at the top of the head.
Microstigmus, or the thin-waisted social wasps, is a small genus wasp in the family Pemphredonidae. This genus is found in the Neotropical realm from Central to South America. They build nests and live in colonies ranging in size from 1 to 18 members. Microstigmus is widely considered to be the only true eusocial species of apoid wasp.
Ammophila sabulosa, the red-banded sand wasp, is a species of the subfamily Ammophilinae of the solitary hunting wasp family Sphecidae, also called digger wasps. Found across Eurasia, the parasitoid wasp is notable for the mass provisioning behaviour of the females, hunting caterpillars mainly on sunny days, paralysing them with a sting, and burying them in a burrow with a single egg. The species is also remarkable for the extent to which females parasitise their own species, either stealing prey from nests of other females to provision their own nests, or in brood parasitism, removing the other female's egg and laying one of her own instead.
The Ibaliidae are a small family of the hymenopteran superfamily Cynipoidea. Ibaliidae differ from most of the cynipoids by the larvae being parasitoids on other wasp larvae in the group Siricidae. The Ibaliidae comprise three extant genera of fairly large wasps, with a total of 20 species, and is a sister group to the rest of the cynipoids except the small subfamily Austrocynipidae.
Ammophilinae is a subfamily of thread-waisted wasps in the family Sphecidae. There are about 6 genera and more than 320 described species in Ammophilinae.
Cerceris tuberculata is a species of wasp in the family Philanthidae.
The Thynnidae are a family of large, solitary wasps whose larvae are almost universally parasitoids of various beetle larvae, especially those in the superfamily Scarabaeoidea. Until recently, the constituents of this family were classified in the family Tiphiidae, but multiple studies have independently confirmed that thynnids are a separate lineage.
Psenidae is a family of aphid wasps in the superfamily Apoidea formerly treated as the tribe Psenini. There are 12 genera and at least 485 described species of Psenidae.
Aphilanthops is a genus of ant queen-kidnapping wasps in the family Philanthidae. At least four species in Aphilanthops are described.