The Euparagiinae are a small subfamily of rare wasps in the family

Vespidae The Vespidae are a large (nearly 5000 species), diverse, cosmopolitan family of wasps, including nearly all the known eusocial wasps (such as '' Polistes fuscatus'', '' Vespa orientalis'', and ''Vespula germanica'') and many solitary wasps. Eac ...

containing a single extant genus '' Euparagia''. The group had a cosmopolitan distribution in past geological times extending back to the Early Cretaceous, but is now a geographically

relict A relict is a surviving remnant of a natural phenomenon. Biology A relict (or relic) is an organism that at an earlier time was abundant in a large area but now occurs at only one or a few small areas. Geology and geomorphology In geology, a r ...

taxon known only from the desert regions of the

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

and northwestern

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. This subfamily, with this same rank, has been previously grouped with the pollen wasps and treated together as the family "Masaridae". Now, the Euparagiinae are considered an independent subfamily and the

sister group In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

of the remainder of the

. Their wing venation is unique and differs from all other Vespidae; they also characteristically have a single small pale spot at the posterior edge of the

mesonotum The mesothorax is the middle of the three segments of the thorax of hexapods, and bears the second pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the mesonotum (dorsal), the mesosternum ( ventral), and the mesopleuron (lateral) ...

, and the femora and trochanters of the male front legs are modified in species-specific shapes. The biology of only one species ('' Euparagia scutellaris'') is known, and the females provision nests in the soil with

weevil Weevils are beetles belonging to the superfamily Curculionoidea, known for their elongated snouts. They are usually small – less than in length – and herbivorous. Approximately 97,000 species of weevils are known. They belong to several fa ...

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.Carpenter, J. M. & L. S. Kimsey. 2009. The genus ''Euparagia'' Cresson (Hymenoptera, Vespidae, Euparagiinae). ''American Museum Novitates'' 3643: 1-1

Taxonomy

*'' Euparagia'' Ezra Townsend Cresson, Cresson, 1879 **'' Euparagia boregoensis'' Bohart, 1948 **'' Euparagia desertorum'' Bohart, 1948 **'' Euparagia maculiceps'' ( Cameron, 1904) **'' Euparagia platiniceps'' Bohart, 1938 **'' Euparagia richardsi'' Bohart & Krombein 1979 **'' Euparagia scutellaris'' Cresson, 1879 **'' Euparagia siccata'' Bohart, 1988 **'' Euparagia timberlakei'' Bohart, 1948 **'' Euparagia unidentata''

Carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...

& Kimsey, 2009 **'' Euparagia yuma'' Bohart, 1988 * '' Curiosivespa'' Rasnitsyn, 1975 ** '' Curiosivespa antiqua'' Carpenter & Rasnitsyn, 1990

Zaza Formation The Zaza Formation is a geological formation located in Buryatia (Russia). It dates to the Lower Cretaceous. The age of the formation is disputed, and is considered likely to be Valanginian-Hauterivian, or Aptian in age. It comprises sandstones, ...

, Russia, Early Cretaceous (

Aptian The Aptian is an age (geology), age in the geologic timescale or a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early Cretaceous, Early or Lower Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or series (stratigraphy), S ...

) ** '' Curiosivespa curiosa'' Rasnitsyn, 1975 Kzyl-Zhar, Kazakhstan, Late Cretaceous (

Turonian The Turonian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS' geologic timescale, the second age (geology), age in the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch, or a stage (stratigraphy), stage in the Upper Cretaceous series (stratigraphy), ...

) ** '' Curiosivespa derivata'' Carpenter & Rasnitsyn, 1990 Dzun-Bain Formation, Mongolia, Early Cretaceous (

) ** '' Curiosivespa magna'' Rasnitsyn, 1975 Kzyl-Zhar, Kazakhstan, Late Cretaceous (

) ** '' Curiosivespa orapa'' Brothers, 1992

Orapa Orapa is a town located in the Central District of Botswana. It is the site of the Orapa diamond mine, the largest diamond-producing mine in the world, and is considered to be the diamond capital of the country. Nearby is another kimberlite ...

, Botswana, Late Cretaceous (

) ** '' Curiosivespa striata'' Perrard & Carpenter, 2017

Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. Th ...

, Myanmar, Late Cretaceous (

Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy's (ICS) geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age (geology), age of the Late Cretaceous epoch (geology), Epoch or the lowest stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Upper Cretace ...

) ** '' Curiosivespa zigrasi'' Perrard & Carpenter, 2017

, Myanmar, Late Cretaceous (

) * '' Priorparagia'' Brothers & Rasnitsyn, 2008 ** '' Priorparagia anancites'' Brothers & Rasnitsyn, 2008

, Botswana, Late Cretaceous (

)

References

Fauna of the Southwestern United States Vespidae Taxa named by William Harris Ashmead {{Vespidae-stub