Scoliidae | |
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Megascolia bidens, Tunisia | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Hymenoptera |
Infraorder: | Aculeata |
Superfamily: | Scolioidea |
Family: | Scoliidae Latreille, 1802 |
Subfamilies | |
The Scoliidae, the scoliid wasps, are a family of wasps comprising about 560 species worldwide. They tend to be black, often marked with yellow or orange, and their wing tips are distinctively corrugated. Males are more slender and elongated than females, with significantly longer antennae, but the sexual dimorphism is not as apparent as in many of the Tiphiidae and Thynnidae.
Scoliid wasps are solitary parasitoids of scarab beetle larvae. Female scoliids burrow into the ground in search of these larvae and then use their sting to paralyze them. They sometimes excavate a chamber and move the paralyzed beetle larva into it before depositing an egg. Scoliid wasps act as important biocontrol agents, as many of the beetles they parasitize are pests, including the Japanese beetle. Male scoliids patrol territories, ready to mate with females emerging from the ground. Adult wasps may be minor pollinators of some plants and can be found on many wildflowers in the late summer. [1]
Scoliidae has at least one species known to engage in pseudocopulation with an orchid. Flowers of the orchid Bipinnula penicillata in subtropical South America resemble females of Pygodasis bistrimaculata , tricking male wasps into attempting to mate and, in the process, provide pollination. [2] Scoliids include some of the largest wasps in the world, such as Megascolia procer. [3]
Living scoliidae genera are classified as follows: [5] [6] [7]
The subfamily Archaeoscoliinae is known exclusively from the fossil record, with the largest diversity having lived during the Cretaceous (Barremian) before going extinct by the late Eocene (Priabonian).
Three additional undescribed specimens from the Ypresian Eocene Okanagan Highlands were referred to the subfamily by S. Bruce Archibald et al. (2018). The two fossils from the Klondike Mountain Formation of Northeastern Washington state, and one fossil from the Allenby Formation of South central British Columbia were mentioned briefly but no specific commentary on placement or finer taxonomic detail was presented in the paper. [14]
In 1847 and 1849 Eduard Eversmann published his "Fauna Hymenopterologica Volgo-Uralensis—exhibiting the species of Hymenoptera which he observed and described in the provinces situated between the Volga river and the Ural mountains." He placed the Scoliadae LATR. as a subfamily of the Sphegidae LATR. He mentions the genus ScoliaFABR. with 13 species, the genus TiphiaFABR. with 3 species, and the genus MeriaILL, with only the species Meria sexpunctata. [15]
There are 36 species of Scoliidae reported to occur in North America. Two additional species, Campsomeriella annulata (Fabricius, 1793) and Micromeriella marginella (Klug, 1810), were introduced to the United States but failed to become established. [16] [17]
Alexandr Pavlovich Rasnitsyn is a Russian entomologist, expert in palaeoentomology, and Honored Scientist of the Russian Federation (2001). His scientific interests are centered on the palaeontology, phylogeny, and taxonomy of hymenopteran insects and insects in general. He has also studied broader biological problems such as evolutionary theory, the principles of phylogenetics, taxonomy, nomenclature, and palaeoecology. He has published over 300 articles and books in several languages. In August 2008 he was awarded the Distinguished Research Medal of the International Society of Hymenopterists.
Megascolia procer, the giant scoliid wasp, is a solitary wasp in the family Scoliidae found across Asia. It is one of the largest wasps in the world, with a wingspan of 11.6 cm (4.6 in).
Scolia dubia, also known as the two-spotted scoliid wasp or a blue-winged scoliid wasp, is a species in the family Scoliidae.
Austroscolia soror is a species of scoliid wasp and a common insect found in eastern Australia. This is one of several Australian species collectively referred to as a blue flower wasp, black flower wasp, or blue hairy flower wasp.
Campsomeriella is a genus of the family Scoliidae, also known as the scoliid wasps. They are generally parasites of beetle larvae, most often of Scarabaeidae.
Scolia is a genus of scoliid wasps in the subfamily Scoliinae. There are over 200 described species in Scolia.
Campsomeris is a Neotropical genus of the family Scoliidae, also known as the scoliid wasps. They are generally parasites of beetle larvae, most often of Scarabaeidae.
Dielis trifasciata, also known as the three-banded scoliid wasp, is a species in the family Scoliidae.
Megascolia is a genus of large solitary pollinating insect from the family Scoliidae, the species classified under Megascolia include some of the world's largest insects. They are parasitoids of large Scarabeid beetles such as the European rhinoceros beetle Oryctes nasicornis and Atlas beetle Chalcosoma atlas.
Scolia nobilitata, also known as the noble scoliid wasp, is a species of scoliid wasp in the family Scoliidae.
Dielis is a New World genus of the family Scoliidae, also known as the scoliid wasps, formerly treated as a subgenus within Campsomeris.
Pygodasis is a New World genus of wasps in the family Scoliidae, formerly treated as a subgenus within Campsomeris.
Xanthocampsomeris is a New World genus of the family Scoliidae, also known as the scoliid wasps, formerly treated as a subgenus within Campsomeris.
Campsomerini is a cosmopolitan tribe of the family Scoliidae. An older, alternative representation of this group is as a subfamily, Campsomerinae.
Scoliini is a cosmopolitan tribe of the family Scoliidae.
Megacolia azurea is a species of scoliid wasp found in parts of tropical Asia. These are among the largest wasps and several subspecies have been described. Their larvae are parasitoids mainly of Scarabeoid larvae.
Austroscolia is a genus of wasps belonging to the family Scoliidae, subfamily Scoliinae. It was formerly classified as a subgenus of Scolia.
Dielis plumipes, the feather-legged scoliid wasp, is a species of scoliid wasp in the family Scoliidae.
Dielis pilipes, the hairy-footed scoliid wasp, is a species of scoliid wasp in the family Scoliidae.
Dielis tolteca, the Toltec scoliid wasp, is a species of hymenopteran in the family Scoliidae. It is commonly found on plants in the genus Solidago.