Liposcelididae

Definition

A family of minute, dorsoventrally flattened psocids (order Psocodea, suborder Troctomorpha) commonly known as booklice or barklice. Members are typically wingless, with the mesothorax and metathorax fused in apterous forms; many species are synanthropic, inhabiting stored products, bird nests, or mammal dens, with some serving as intermediate hosts of avian tapeworms. The family comprises two subfamilies (Embidopsocinae, Liposcelidinae) and includes the economically significant genus Liposcelis.

Etymology

From Liposcelis, the type genus (Greek lipos 'fat, grease' + skelis 'leg'), + -idae (family suffix)

Example

Liposcelis bostrychophila, a common stored-product pest in the Liposcelididae, thrives in humid grain stores and can vector the tapeworm Hymenolepis diminuta among rodents.

Related Terms

• Psocodea
• Troctomorpha
• booklouse
• Apterous
• Synanthropic
• stored-product entomology
• Liposcelis

Usage Notes

The family is morphologically diagnosed by broad head, short three-segmented tarsi, and reduced or absent wings; wingless species are frequently mistaken for nymphs of other psocid families. Liposcelididae is sometimes treated as a family within Psocoptera in older literature, but current classifications place it in Psocodea following molecular phylogenetics. The common name 'booklice' is shared with other small psocids and is not taxonomically precise.