Tiger beetles are a family of beetles, Cicindelidae, known for their aggressive predatory habits and running speed. The fastest known species of tiger beetle, Rivacindela hudsoni, can run at a speed of 9 km/h, or about 125 body lengths per second. As of 2005, about 2,600 species and subspecies were known, with the richest diversity in the Oriental (Indo-Malayan) region, followed by the Neotropics. While historically treated as a subfamily of ground beetles (Carabidae) under the name Cicindelinae, several studies since 2020 indicated that they should be treated as a family, the Cicindelidae, which are a sister group to Carabidae within the Adephaga.
Anthrax is a genus of bombyliid flies, commonly known as "bee-flies" due to their resemblance to bees. Most are dull black flies, and are usually small to medium in size, 4–20 millimetres (0.2–0.8 in), and many species have striking wing patterns.
Polistes is a cosmopolitan genus of paper wasps and the only genus in the tribe Polistini. Vernacular names for the genus include umbrella wasps, coined by Walter Ebeling in 1975 to distinguish it from other types of paper wasp, in reference to the form of their nests, and umbrella paper wasps. Polistes is the single largest genus within the family Vespidae, with over 200 recognized species. Their innate preferences for nest-building sites leads them to commonly build nests on human habitation, where they can be very unwelcome; although generally not aggressive, they can be provoked into defending their nests. All species are predatory, and they may consume large numbers of caterpillars, in which respect they are generally considered beneficial.
In zoological nomenclature, a type species is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen. A similar concept is used for suprageneric groups and called a type genus.
The Sphecidae are a cosmopolitan family of wasps of the suborder Apocrita that includes sand wasps, mud daubers, and other thread-waisted wasps.
Cephalotes is a genus of tree-dwelling ant species from the Americas, commonly known as turtle ants. All appear to be gliding ants, with the ability to "parachute" and steer their fall so as to land back on the tree trunk rather than fall to the ground, which is often flooded.
Bembix is a large cosmopolitan genus of large, often brightly colored predatory sand wasps, consisting of about 380 species.
Eumenes is a genus of wasps in the subfamily Eumeninae. It is a large and widespread genus, with over 100 species and subspecies occurring worldwide. The genus was first proposed by Pierre André Latreille in 1802, with the type species later designated by Latreille in 1810. All species make jug-like nests out of mud, usually attached to twigs. The larvae are fed with caterpillars.
Synagris is an Afrotropical genus of large potter wasps. Several Synagris wasps are strongly sexually dimorphic and males bear notable morphological secondary sexual traits including metasomal lamellar or angular protruding structures and hornlike or tusklike mandibular and/or clypeal projections.
Pemphredonidae is a family of aphid wasps formerly treated as the subfamily Pemphredoninae. There are 19 genera and 556 described species in the family.
Pangonius is a genus within the horse-fly family (Tabanidae), often misspelled as Pangonia; Latreille originally published the name as Pangonius in 1802, emending it in 1804 to Pangonia, but the emendation is not valid under the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Some species that were earlier placed in this genus are now in the genus Philoliche.
Omophron is a genus of ground beetle (Carabidae), the only extant genus in the subfamily Omophroninae. It is mostly distributed in the Northern Hemisphere with the southern border running through Guatemala and Hispaniola in Americas, South Africa and Madagascar in Africa, Malaysia and Philippines in Asia.
Carabinae is a subfamily of ground beetles in the family Carabidae, containing ten genera and over fourteen hundred described species. It has two tribes, the Cychrini Laporte (1834) and Carabini Latreille (1802). The latter is divided into two subtribes, the Carabina Latreille (1802) and Ceroglossina Vacher de Lapouge (1927).
Chlorion is a genus of parasitoid wasps in the family Sphecidae. Species have been recorded from the Americas, Africa and tropical Asia through to Java; they appear to prey mostly on Orthopteran insects.
Polistes carnifex, commonly known as the executioner wasp or executioner paper wasp, is a neotropical vespid wasp in the cosmopolitan genus Polistes.
Oxybelus is a genus of wasps in the family Crabronidae. The species are found worldwide except in the Australasian realm. They are especially represented in the Palearctic. Oxybelus is the largest genus in Crabronidae, with 264 species known. Oxybelus wasps sometimes gravitate towards people, flying around travellers and landing on them, even when they are shooed away. It is not known why they do it, however it might possibly be them trying to drink sweat for its minerals.
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.
Leucospis is a genus of wasps belonging to the family Leucospidae. Most species are brightly coloured with yellow and black patterning and about 2 cm long. They have characteristically enlarged femurs on the hind leg, with the lower margin toothed. The wings have a longitudinal fold and the long ovipositor is bent over their backs above the abdomen or metasoma. They are parasitic on wasps and solitary bees that construct cells and provision food for their offspring. The Leucospis larvae live and grow as ectoparasites of the host larvae. Usually, only one parasite emerges from a single cell. The genus Micrapion from South Africa is very closely related, and phylogenetic studies suggest merging of the two genera. The genus Leucospis is found across the world in the tropical regions.
