Blacini is a

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

braconid The Braconidae are a family of parasitoid wasps. After the closely related Ichneumonidae, braconids make up the second-largest family in the order Hymenoptera, with about 17,000 recognized species and many thousands more undescribed. One analysis ...

Parasitoid wasp Parasitoid wasps are a large group of hymenopteran Superfamily (zoology), superfamilies, with all but the wood wasps (Orussoidea) being in the wasp-waisted Apocrita. As parasitoids, they lay their eggs on or in the bodies of other arthropods, ...

Taxonomy and phylogeny

Blacini was formerly treated as the subfamily Blacinae, but the subfamily was synonymized under

Brachistinae Brachistinae is a subfamily of braconid wasps in the family Braconidae. Taxonomy and phylogeny The genera of Brachistinae were formerly classified as tribes under the subfamily Helconinae. The tribe Blacini was split into a separate subfamily, ...

based on molecular evidence in 2011. The former Blacinae were given tribal status under Brachistinae.

Description and distribution

Members of this tribe are tiny and generally black or brown in color. They have non-cyclostome mouthparts and a carina, or ridge, along the back of the head. These wasps have a worldwide distribution. The genus ''Blacus'' is by far the most common and has a cosmopolitan range, with about 40 described species in the New World. The other genera are more restricted, and mostly found in South and Central America.

Biology

Little is known about the biology of species within Blacini, but ''Blacus'' species are known to be parasitoids of

beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

e. Males of some ''Blacus'' species are known to form mating swarms.

Genera

These genera are members of the tribe Blacini: * '' Apoblacus'' van Achterberg, 1976 * '' Blacometeorus'' Tobias, 1976^{c g} * '' Blacus'' Nees von Esenbeck, 1818^{c g b} * †'' Palaeoblacus'' Statz, 1936 Data sources: i = ITIS, c = Catalogue of Life, g = GBIF, b = Bugguide.net

References

External links

BugGuide.net. Tribe Blacini

DNA barcodes at BOLD systems
Braconidae Parasitica tribes {{Ichneumonoidea-stub