|
Campsomerinae
Campsomerini is a cosmopolitan tribe of the family Scoliidae. An older, alternative representation of this group is as a subfamily, Campsomerinae. As with other scoliid wasps, these are solitary parasitoids of scarabaeid beetle larvae that live in soil or leaf litter. Taxonomy and phylogeny Campsomerinae was originally described by Betrem in 1972 as a sister group to the Scoliinae comprising the scoliid wasps with two recurrent veins. This subfamily was further divided into the Campsomerini for species with two submarginal cells and Trielidini for species with three submarginal cells. Following the discovery of the genus '' Proscolia'', the Campsomerinae and Scoliinae of Betrem were demoted to tribes, Campsomerini and Scoliini, under a newly-defined Scoliinae by Rasnitsyn in 1977 and maintained as such by and Day ''et al.'' in 1981. In 1996, Argaman re-elevated the tribes to subfamily status, along with elevating Betrem's Trielidini to a separate subfamily as Colpinae. Argaman f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scoliidae
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. Biology 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. S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |