Biodiversity
Guides
Achipteriidae
Achipteriidae is a family of oribatid mites in the order Sarcoptiformes. Published taxonomic summaries recognize about nine genera and at least 80 described species, including Achipteria, Anachipteria, Campachipteria, Cerachipteria, Cubachipteria, Dentachipteria, Hoffmanacarus, Parachipteria, and Plakoribates. The family is represented in studies from Europe, East Asia, Mongolia, the Russian Far East, and western North America. Research on individual species shows that development, external setae, and ecological associations can differ among members, so species-level observations should not be treated as universal family traits.
Araneae
spiders
Araneae is an order of air-breathing arachnids comprising over 51,000 described species across 136 families, ranking seventh in total species diversity among all organismal orders. Members are characterized by two body regions (cephalothorax and unsegmented abdomen), eight legs, cheliceral fangs with venom glands, and abdominal spinnerets that produce silk. The order is divided into two suborders: Mesothelae (87 species, retaining abdominal segmentation) and Opisthothelae (over 39,000 species, without abdominal segmentation). Spiders occupy virtually all terrestrial habitats worldwide except Antarctica, functioning exclusively as predators of insects and other small arthropods.
Cicurinidae
Cicurinidae is an accepted spider family in the World Spider Catalog. Its current circumscription reflects a long history of proposed transfers among spider families, and the catalog records five accepted genera and 189 accepted species.
Dipluridae
Dipluridae is a family of mygalomorph spiders commonly called curtain-web spiders. They are chiefly associated with South America and the Caribbean, with some members of Masteria occurring in Australia and Oceania. Their characteristic retreats are sheets or funnels of silk extending from a protected crevice, burrow, or other shelter.
Epedanidae
Epedanidae is an Asian family of laniatorean harvestmen, the arachnids commonly called harvesters or daddy longlegs. Its members are small, heavily equipped relatives of other Grassatores and are especially diverse across tropical and subtropical parts of Asia.
Ethmiidae
Ethmiidae is a family-level name used for a lineage of small moths in the gelechioid branch of Lepidoptera. Classification sources do not treat the name identically: some use Ethmiidae, while others place the group as Ethmiinae within Depressariidae. The genus Ethmia is especially prominent in the available taxonomic literature, alongside several less diverse genera. Much of the biological detail is documented for particular species rather than for the family as a whole.
Eurymelidae
Eurymelidae is a family of true bugs placed by GBIF in Hemiptera. The literature also uses the subfamily name Eurymelinae and includes a dedicated study of its biology and morphology. Research on named members links them with eucalypts and with ants that attend them. Those observations are useful ecological evidence, but they should not be treated as a claim that every eurymelid species has the same host or ant association.
Genus-undetermined
Genus-undetermined is a placeholder designation used when a specimen or taxon cannot be assigned to a known genus. This occurs when diagnostic morphological features are insufficient, when taxonomic relationships remain unresolved, or when material is too incomplete for reliable classification. Such specimens are common in ecological surveys, fossil collections, and preliminary biodiversity assessments. The designation signals that further examination—potentially including molecular analysis, dissection, or comparison with type specimens—is required for definitive placement.
Hemipeplinae
Hemipeplinae is a subfamily of beetles in Mycteridae. A 2025 review recognized three genera and 59 described species, while noting that detailed biology remains poorly known for many members. The subfamily is distributed across the New World, Afrotropical, and Austro-Oriental regions, with most recorded diversity in warmer areas. Although the informal name “palm and flower beetles” reflects repeated plant associations, gut-content evidence from several studied species indicates that fungal material can be more important than plant tissue.
Hydroporinae
Hydroporinae is a large subfamily of predaceous diving beetles (family Dytiscidae) containing at least 2,200 described species. Members are primarily aquatic, inhabiting diverse freshwater habitats from lentic pools to lotic streams across all continents except Antarctica. The subfamily exhibits remarkable diversity in body size, with some species among the smallest diving beetles known. Many species are habitat specialists, including stygobiont forms adapted to subterranean waters.
Insecta
Insects
Insects constitute the largest and most diverse class of arthropods, comprising more than one million described species with estimates of total species ranging from 2 to 30 million. They are characterized by a three-part body plan (head, thorax, abdomen), three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and one pair of antennae. Insects occupy virtually every terrestrial and freshwater habitat, and many have colonized marine environments. Their ecological dominance stems from extraordinary diversity in form, function, and life history strategies.
Iteaphilidae
Iteaphilidae is an accepted family of flies in the order Diptera and the superfamily Empidoidea. Modern work on the family has revised the classification of Iteaphila and recognized Paraiteaphila as a separate genus for part of the former species grouping. The family is documented in several geographic regions, including the Nearctic and parts of Europe. Published observations also establish that at least some iteaphilids visit flowers, although the available sources do not support treating every behavior or life-history feature as universal across the family.
Jurasaidae
Jurasaidae is a small family of elateroid beetles described from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Its best-known members have an unusual life history: females retain a larva-like form after becoming reproductive adults, while males develop a more conventional beetle form. Larvae, pupae, and adults have been found in soil beneath leaf litter. Research is recent, and feeding and broader ecology remain incompletely known.
Lamponidae
Lamponidae is a family of araneomorph spiders best represented in Australia. Its members include Australasian ground-dwelling spiders, and some Lampona species are known as white-tailed spiders. The family also includes lineages recorded from New Caledonia, New Guinea, and New Zealand.
Limoniinae
limoniid crane flies
Limoniinae is a subfamily of limoniid crane flies in Diptera. It includes more than 30 genera and thousands of described species reported from regions around the world. The subfamily is ecologically diverse: many larvae are associated with decaying plant material or wet surfaces, while other lineages use different resources. Adults are often small to medium crane flies that rest with the wings folded along the body.
Liptenini
Liptenini is a tribe of butterflies in the family Lycaenidae and subfamily Poritiinae. It is a taxonomic group rather than one species, so its members should not be expected to share one exact wing pattern, habitat, or life history. Published work on the tribe includes species descriptions, genital morphology, and revisions that change combinations and synonymies. Those studies show why identification is often tied to specimen-level evidence and comparison with related taxa.
Macrothelidae
Macrothelidae is a family of mygalomorph spiders in Araneae. It includes the living genus Macrothele and several other genera described or revised from Asia, and it has a fossil record in Cretaceous amber. Members are commonly discussed as funnel-web mygalomorphs, although the habits of one genus should not be treated as universal for the whole family.
Megaraneus
Megaraneus is a genus of orb-weaving spiders in the family Araneidae. The genus currently contains one recognized species, Megaraneus gabonensis, an African spider first described under a different genus name. Published records place it in several countries across western, central, eastern, and southern Africa. Its documented biology includes an orb web, low-elevation records in several African biomes, a distinctive body form, and a Least Concern assessment in South Africa.
Mellinidae
Mellinidae is a small family of wasps within Hymenoptera and the apoidean line of aculeate wasps. Available family-level summaries recognize two genera, Mellinus and Xenosphex, and report the family from several biogeographic realms. The family has a history of being treated as Mellininae within Crabronidae, while later phylogenomic work supports recognizing it separately. Detailed natural-history information is uneven among the family’s members, so traits documented for one species should not be generalized to the entire family.
Mesembrinellidae
Mesembrinellidae is a family of calyptrate flies in the order Diptera. It is a strictly Neotropical lineage, so its native range is confined to tropical and subtropical parts of the Americas rather than being worldwide. The family was historically treated as part of Calliphoridae, but molecular work supports it as a distinct lineage within Oestroidea. A 2019 revision recognized 53 valid extant species and three valid genera.
Micrathetis
Micrathetis new-species is a newly described moth species in the family Noctuidae, representing a recent addition to the genus Micrathetis. The genus Micrathetis belongs to the tribe Elaphriini within the subfamily Noctuinae, a group of owlet moths. As a newly described species, detailed information about its biology, distribution, and ecology remains limited pending further study.
Microsaniinae
Microsaniinae is a subfamily of flat-footed flies in Platypezidae, within Diptera. Its best-known genus is Microsania, whose members are often called smoke flies because adults can respond rapidly to smoke. A Finnish checklist places six Microsania species in this subfamily. Recent work in boreal Finland linked adult activity at prescribed burns with larvae found in burnt soil.
Mileewinae
Mileewinae is a subfamily of leafhoppers in Cicadellidae, established by Evans in 1947. It is divided into four tribes. Members are small and slender, with coloration reported as brownish, grayish, yellowish, or dark with blue and yellow accents. The subfamily has records in Afrotropical, Indomalayan, Neotropical, and Australian regions.
Nepticuloidea
Pygmy Leafminer Moths
Nepticuloidea is a superfamily of minute monotrysian Lepidoptera comprising two families: Nepticulidae (pygmy moths) and Opostegidae (white eyecap moths). Members are among the smallest moths worldwide, with wingspans of only a few millimetres. The superfamily is characterized by prominent eyecaps covering the compound eyes. Molecular phylogenetic studies indicate the group originated in the early Cretaceous, approximately 100 million years ago, coinciding with angiosperm diversification.
Orthotrichia
microcaddisfly
Orthotrichia is a genus of microcaddisflies (family Hydroptilidae) containing approximately 280 species worldwide, making it the most species-rich genus in the family. The genus exhibits hypermetamorphosis and has an almost worldwide but patchy distribution, with notable radiations in Australia (55 species, ~20% of global fauna) and China (14 species). Australian species are postulated to represent a relatively recent arrival from the Oriental Region, with morphological and biological differences from Northern Hemisphere congeners suggested to contribute to regional success.
Paramunnidae
Paramunnidae is a family of isopods in the suborder Asellota and superfamily Janiroidea. It includes many named genera, among them Paramunna, Austrimunna, Pleurogonium, and Abyssianira. The family is represented in marine and freshwater records, and members differ in habitat and appearance. The Paramunna complex demonstrates that family-level diversity includes narrowly distributed Southern Hemisphere shallow-water forms.
Paranthuridae
Paranthuridae is a family of marine isopod crustaceans in Isopoda. Paranthuridae Menzies & Glynn, 1968 is placed in Malacostraca. A modern revision discussed six genera and supplied a revised key. The family is represented in marine and brackish records, but sources do not support one habitat or life history for every member.
Penestomidae
Penestomidae is an accepted family of araneomorph spiders commonly listed as flat velvet spiders. Modern work recognizes the family as a distinct lineage rather than a subfamily of Eresidae. Its current diversity is placed in the single genus Penestomus.
Physoglenidae
Physoglenidae is a family of araneomorph spiders distributed in Australia, Chile, and New Zealand. It includes delicate web-associated spiders and a diverse set of genera concentrated in the southern Pacific region.
Pseudoscorpiones
pseudoscorpions, false scorpions, book scorpions
Pseudoscorpions are tiny arachnids, most under 5 mm in length, superficially resembling scorpions but lacking a stinger and elongated tail. They are among the oldest terrestrial colonizers, with fossils dating to the Middle Devonian (ca. 390 million years ago). Despite their ancient lineage, they exhibit remarkable morphological stasis, with even Devonian fossils appearing modern. Most species inhabit concealed microhabitats such as beneath bark, in leaf litter, soil, caves, or mammal nests, making them seldom encountered despite being fairly common. They are predatory, seizing small invertebrate prey with venomous pincer-like pedipalps.
Psychopsidae
silky lacewings
Psychopsidae is a family of lacewing relatives in the order Neuroptera. Its living members are commonly called silky lacewings because adults have broad wings covered with fine hairs and often marked with striking patterns. The family is represented today in Afrotropical, Indomalayan, and Australasian regions, while fossils show a much longer history and greater past diversity. Family-level features are useful for recognition, but details such as diet and seasonal activity vary among its constituent genera and species.
Stenoniscidae
Stenoniscidae is an accepted family of crustaceans in the isopod order Isopoda and the oniscidean lineage. Current GBIF taxonomy places 19 descendants under the family record and recognizes three named genera: Archeostenoniscus, Metastenoniscus, and Stenoniscus. The family is represented in taxonomic literature by both living terrestrial-isopod material and fossil research. Because family-level records are brief, details that vary among constituent species are best left unspecified here.
Titanidiops
Titanidiops is an accepted genus of mygalomorph spiders in the family Idiopidae. GBIF places it in the order Araneae and records the name with the authorship Simon, 1903. The World Spider Catalog lists species from Africa, Asia, the Canary Islands, and the Middle East. The genus has a complicated taxonomic history: its status was separated from Idiops, and Pachyidiops is currently treated as a synonym in the catalog.
Trachycosmidae
Trachycosmidae is a family of araneomorph spiders established by Norman I. Platnick in 2002. Its members are two-clawed spiders with a distinctive combination of spinneret, gland-spigot, epigynal, and eye characters. The family is centered on Australia but also includes lineages recorded from New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Indonesia, New Caledonia, and parts of Asia and South America.
Trigonidiinae
trigs, sword-tail crickets, winged bush crickets
Trigonidiinae is a subfamily of true crickets (family Trigonidiidae) in the order Orthoptera, suborder Ensifera. Commonly known as trigs, sword-tail crickets, or winged bush crickets, this group contains small crickets with diverse morphological adaptations. The subfamily includes tribes Phylloscyrtini (Americas distribution) and Trigonidiini (worldwide except Antarctica), along with numerous genera distributed across tropical and temperate regions globally. Many species exhibit distinctive traits such as enlarged maxillary palps, sword-shaped ovipositors, and specialized acoustic communication including substrate-borne vibrational signals.
Vietnamellidae
Vietnamellidae is a small family of mayflies in the order Ephemeroptera. The living members are placed in the genus Vietnamella, while the fossil genus Burmella is known from Burmese amber. Extant records are concentrated in the Oriental and Indomalayan regions, including China, India, Thailand, and Vietnam. Research on the family has combined larval morphology, adult structures, and DNA data.
Zephyrarchaea
Australian assassin spiders
Zephyrarchaea is a genus of assassin spiders in the family Archaeidae. Michael Rix and Mark Harvey established the genus in 2012 while revising the archaeid spiders of southern Australia. The genus includes species from temperate parts of Victoria, South Australia, and south-western Western Australia. Its known range is divided between south-eastern and south-western regions of the Australian mainland, with an additional species recorded from Kangaroo Island.