| Sclerodermus | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Bethylidae |
| Subfamily: | Epyrinae |
| Tribe: | Sclerodermini |
| Genus: | Sclerodermus Latreille, 1810 |
| Synonyms | |
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Sclerodermus is a genus of chrysidoid wasps in the family Bethylidae. There are at least 20 described species in Sclerodermus. [2] [3] [4]
Species of Sclerodermus exhibit quasi-social behavior: multiple females cooperate to paralyze a host and care for a shared brood. [5] Despite this cooperation, they consistently produce highly female-biased sex ratios often with less than 10% males, even when many mothers are present. [5]
According to classical sex ratio theory, more mothers should lead to a more balanced ratio of sons and daughters, since males would no longer be competing only with their brothers to mate. The extreme female bias in Sclerodermus contradicts this expectation. [5] Recent models suggest that dominant females may influence sex ratios by killing the sons of subordinates or preventing their production, a behavior known as infanticide. [5] These social dynamics help explain the unusual patterns observed in this genus.
Data sources: i = ITIS, [6] c = Catalogue of Life, [7] g = GBIF, [2] b = Bugguide.net [3]
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