Doryctinae

Doryctinae
Doryctinae
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Class: Insecta
Subclass: Pterygota
Infraclass: Neoptera
Superorder: Endopterygota
Order: Hymenoptera
Suborder: Apocrita
Superfamily: Ichneumonoidea
Family: Braconidae
Subfamily: Doryctinae
Genera

Numerous, see text

The Doryctinae or doryctine wasps are a large subfamily of braconid parasitic wasps (Braconidae) with a worldwide distribution (except the polar regions).[1] Numerous genera and species formerly unknown to science are being described every year. This subfamily is presumably part of a clade containing otherwise any or all of the Alysiinae, Braconinae, Gnamptodontinae, Opiinae and Ypsistocerinae, and might be most closely related to the last one of these; whether the Rogadinae are also part of this group is not known with certainty.

Contents

Description and ecology

Doryctine wasps are found across almost the entire size range of Braconidae; some species are quite large by the family's standards, and even in the small species the head is massive and the body, while slender, remarkably elongated. Also, Doryctinae tend to be small-winged; many have very much reduced wings, and numerous species in this family are unable to fly or even lack wings entirely. They have a characteristic row of stout spines running lengthwise along the foreleg tibia, and a cyclostome depression above the mandibles.[1]

Like the Mesostoinae (a small subfamily endemic to Australia), some Doryctinae are known to form galls on plants. In general however, they are koinobionts, as is usual for Braconidae. The food of the koinobiont Doryctinae larvae are most often the larvae of wood-boring beetles – such as jewel beetles (Buprestidae) –, on which the wasp larvae feed as ectoparasitoids. Other species parasitize lepidopteran (butterfly and moth) or symphytan (sawfly) larvae. Several doryctine wasps are of economic importance as biocontrol agents, e.g. against eucalyptus pests.[1]

Selected genera

Genera placed in the Doryctinae include:

  • Acanthodoryctes
  • Acrophasmus
  • Afrospathius Belokobylskij & Quicke, 2000
  • Allorhogas
  • Antidoryctes Belokobylskij & Quicke, 2000
  • Aptenobracon
  • Asiaheterospilus Belokobylskij, 2001
  • Australospathius
  • Binarea
  • Bracodoryctes Belokobylskij & Quicke, 2000
  • Caenophanes
  • Chelonodoryctes Belokobylskij & Quicke, 2000
  • Cryptodoryctes Belokobylskij & Quicke, 2000
  • Cyphodoryctes Marsh, 1993
  • Dendrosoter
  • Doryctes
  • Doryctophasmus
  • Doryctopsis
  • Ecphylopsis
  • Ecphylus
  • Euscelinus
  • Evaniodes
  • Gildoria
  • Halycea
  • Hemidoryctes Belokobylskij, 1993 (= Atopodoryctes)
  • Hemispathius Belokobylskij & Quicke, 2000
  • Heterospilus
  • Johnsonius
  • Lianus Gomes & Penteado-Dias, 2006
  • Liobrucon
  • Megaloproctus
  • Mimodoryctes
  • Monarea
  • Monolexis
  • Nipponecphylus Belokobylskij, 2001
  • Ontsira
  • Oroceguera Seltmann & Sharkey, 2007
  • Pambolidea
  • Parallorhogas
  • Paraspathius
  • Psenobolus
  • Pseudosyngaster
  • Rhoptrocentrus
  • Rutheia
  • Ryukyuspathius
  • Schlettereriella
  • Sonanus Belokobylskij, 2001
  • Spathius
  • Syngaster
  • Synspilus Belokobylskij & Quicke, 2000

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c Stevens et al. (2008)

References

  • Stevens, N.B.; Iqbal, M.; Austin, A.D. & Jennings, J.T. (2008): Australian Faunal Directory – Subfamily Doryctinae. Version of 2008-OCT-09. Retrieved 2009-MAR-10.


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