The Cydistinae are a

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

of phengodid beetles (

Phengodidae The beetle family Phengodidae is known also as glowworm beetles, whose larvae are known as glowworms. The females and larvae have bioluminescent organs. They occur throughout the New World from extreme southern Canada to Chile, numbering over ...

). It contains the genera '' Cydistus'' and '' Microcydistus''. The Cydistinae were until recently, ''

incertae sedis or is a term used for a taxonomy (biology), taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Alternatively, such groups are frequently referred to as "enigmatic taxa". In the system of open nomenclature, uncertainty ...

'' due to their strange morphological characteristics, however molecular phylogenetics have shown them to be members of the Phengodidae. Unlike other Phengogidae, which are found exclusively in the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

, Cydistinae are found in western Asia, including Southern and eastern Turkey, Jordan, Israel, Iraq, Iran, and possibly Syria. The biology of Cydistinae larva and adult females are not known, as only adult males have been described thus far. But, given that all the known larvae and neotenic larva-like females of the closely related

Rhagophthalmidae The Rhagophthalmidae are a family of beetles within the superfamily Elateroidea. Members of this beetle family have bioluminescent organs on the larvae, and sometimes adults, and are closely related to the Phengodidae ( American glowworm beetles ...

and

are bioluminescent, live in leaf litter and soil, and feed on millipedes, the larva and females of the Cydistinae likely possess similar characteristics. The Cydistinae represent the earliest diverging lineage of the Phengodidae yet known, and are also sister to the Rhagophthalmidae.

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