Earwigs make up the insect order Dermaptera. With about 2,000 species in 12 families, they are one of the smaller insect orders. Earwigs have characteristic cerci, a pair of forceps-like pincers on their abdomen, and membranous wings folded underneath short, rarely used forewings, hence the scientific order name, "skin wings". Some groups are tiny parasites on mammals and lack the typical pincers. Earwigs are found on all continents except Antarctica.
The family Gryllidae contains the subfamilies and genera which entomologists now term true crickets. They belong to the Orthopteran subfamily Ensifera, having long, whip-like antennae and has been reduced in terms of the older literature, with taxa such as the spider-crickets and allies, sword-tail crickets, wood or ground crickets and scaly crickets elevated to family level. The type genus is Gryllus and the first use of the family name "Gryllidae" was by Walker.
Pygidicranidae is a family of earwigs, formerly placed in the suborder Forficulina, now in the suborder Neodermaptera. The family currently contains twelve subfamilies and twenty six genera. Eight of the subfamilies are monotypic, each containing a single genus. Of the subfamilies, both Astreptolabidinae and Burmapygiinae are extinct and known solely from fossils found in Burmese amber. Similarly Archaeosoma, Gallinympha, and Geosoma, which have not been placed into any of the subfamilies, are also known only from fossils. Living members of the family are found in Australia, South Africa, North America, and Asia. The monotypic genus Anataelia, described by Ignacio Bolivar in 1899, is found only on the Canary Islands. As with all members of Neodermaptera, pygidicranids do not have any ocelli. The typical pygidicranid bodyplan includes a small, flattened-looking body, which has a dense covering of bristly hairs (setae). The pair of cerci at the end of the abdomen are symmetrical in structure. The head is broad, with the fourth, fifth and sixth antenna segments (antennomeres) that are not transverse. In general Pygidicranids also have equally sized ventral cervical sclerites, and in having the rearmost sclerite separated from, or only touching the center of the prosternum. Cannibalism of young has been observed in at least one species in the family, Challia hongkongensis, in which an adult female was found eating a still-living nymph of the same species. The same species in a different area has been observed possibly eating fruits or seeds, making the species an omnivore.
Archidermaptera is an extinct suborders of earwigs in the order Dermaptera. It is one of two extinct suborders of earwigs, and contains two families known only from Late Triassic to Early Cretaceous fossils. The suborder is classified on the basis of general similarities. The Archidermaptera have unsegmented cerci and tarsi with four to five segments.
Protodiplatyidae is an extinct family of earwigs. It is one of three families in the suborder Archidermaptera, alongside Dermapteridae and Turanovia. Species are known from Jurassic and Early Cretaceous fossils and have unsegmented cerci and tarsi with four to five segments.
Microdiplatys is an extinct genus of earwigs, in the family Protodiplatyidae. It is one of only six genera in the family, its family being the only one in the suborder.
Archidermapteron martynovi is an extinct species of earwig, in the genus Archidermapteron, family Protodiplatyidae, the suborder Archidermaptera, the order Dermaptera, and is the only species in the genus Archidermapteron, which simply means "ancient member of the Dermaptera". It had long, segmented cerci unlike modern species of Dermaptera, but tegmina and hind wings that folded up into a "wing package" that are like modern earwigs. The only clear fossil of the species was found in Russia.
Dermapteron incerta is an extinct species of earwig in the family Protodiplatyidae. It is the only species in the genus Dermapteron.
Microdiplatys campodeiformis is an extinct species of earwig in the family Protodiplatyidae. It is one of only two species in the genus Microdiplatys, the other being Microdiplatys oculatus.
Microdiplatys oculatus is an extinct species of earwig in the family Protodiplatyidae. It is one of only two species in the genus Microdiplatys, the other being Microdiplatys campodeiformis.
Turanovia incompleta is an extinct species of earwig. It is the only species in the genus Turanovia. It is found in the Callovian-Oxfordian Karabastau Formation of Kazakhstan.
Anisolabididae is a family of earwigs, in the suborder Forficulina and the order Dermaptera. It is one of nine families in the suborder Forficulina, and contains thirty-eight genera spread across thirteen subfamilies.
Chelisochidae is a family of earwigs whose members are commonly known as black earwigs. The family contains a total of approximately 96 species, spread across sixteen genera in three subfamilies.
Labiduridae, whose members are known commonly as striped earwigs, is a relatively large family of earwigs in the suborder Forficulina.
Anisolabis howarthi is a blind, troglobite species of earwig in the genus Anisolabis, the family Anisolabididae, the suborder Forficulina, and the order Dermaptera. The species is native to Hawaii, and was first classified by Brindle in 1979. According to a paper published by him in 1980 in the journal Pacific Insects, the species is first known true troglobite earwig; while there are other blind species that live underneath soil or humus, this is the first to actually inhabit a cave.
Protelytroptera is an extinct order of insects thought to be a stem group from which the modern Dermaptera evolved. These insects, which resemble modern Blattodea, or Cockroaches, are known from the Permian of North America, Europe and Australia, from the fossils of their shell-like forewings and the large, unequal, anal fan. None of their fossils are known from the Triassic when the morphological changes from Protelytroptera to Dermaptera presumably took place.
This taxonomy of the Dermaptera follows Engel & Haas (2007) to the rank of Tribe.
Neodermaptera is a suborder of earwigs in the order Dermaptera. There are about 14 families and more than 2,000 described species in Neodermaptera.
Dermapteridae is an extinct family of earwigs known from the Late Triassic to Mid Cretaceous, it is part of the extinct suborder Archidermaptera, alongside Protodiplatyidae and Turanovia. It was first named as a subfamily by Vishniakova in 1980, and elevated to family status by Engel in 2003 without discussion.
Eodermaptera is an extinct suborder of earwigs known from the Middle Jurassic to Mid Cretaceous. Defining characteristics include "tarsi three-segmented, tegmina retain venation, 8th and 9th abdominal tergite in females are narrowed, but separate from 10th tergite and not covered by 7th tergite and exposed ovipositor" They are considered to be more closely related to Neodermaptera than the more basal Archidermaptera.
