Hymenoptera
Guides
Abia
Honeysuckle Sawflies and Allies
Abia is a genus of sawflies in the family Cimbicidae. These are stout-bodied insects commonly encountered in Europe. Species in this genus were formerly placed in the genus Zaraea, which is now considered a synonym. The genus includes several species that feed on conifers and honeysuckles.
Abia americana
Abia americana is a species of sawfly in the family Cimbicidae. It is found across much of Canada, with records from Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, and Newfoundland. As a member of the Cimbicidae, it belongs to a group of relatively large, robust sawflies whose larvae feed on woody plants.
Acanthocaudus caudacanthus
Acanthocaudus caudacanthus is a species of parasitoid wasp in the family Braconidae, first described by Smith in 1944. It belongs to a genus characterized by distinctive morphological features related to the ovipositor. The species is known from North America. Like other braconid wasps, it likely functions as a parasitoid of other insects, though specific host records for this species are not well documented.
Acantholyda atripes
Acantholyda atripes is a species of web-spinning sawfly in the family Pamphiliidae. Members of this genus are known for their distinctive larval habit of constructing silken webs on coniferous foliage. The species name 'atripes' refers to dark-colored legs. Like other pamphiliids, it is associated with pine hosts.
Acantholyda bicolorata
Acantholyda bicolorata is a species of sawfly in the family Pamphiliidae. The genus Acantholyda is known for species that are commonly referred to as web-spinning sawflies or pine web-spinning sawflies, with larvae that construct silken webs on host plants. However, specific information regarding A. bicolorata itself is extremely limited in available sources. The species name 'bicolorata' suggests a two-colored appearance, but detailed biological or ecological data is not readily documented.
Acantholyda verticalis
Acantholyda verticalis is a species of sawfly in the family Pamphiliidae. It belongs to a genus of web-spinning sawflies whose larvae construct silken webs on host plants. The species has been documented in several Canadian provinces including Alberta, British Columbia, and New Brunswick. Like other pamphiliids, it is likely associated with coniferous hosts, though specific details for this species remain limited in available sources.
Aclista
Aclista is a genus of small parasitoid wasps in the family Diapriidae. These insects are part of the diverse community of proctotrupomorph wasps that develop as parasitoids of other insects. Members of Diapriidae are generally associated with decaying organic matter where they parasitize the larvae of Diptera and other insects.
Acmopolynema
fairyflies
Acmopolynema is a genus of fairyflies (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) established by Ogloblin in 1946. Species in this genus are minute parasitoid wasps, with new species described from India and distributional records from China, Japan, Madagascar, and other regions. The genus belongs to a family renowned for containing some of the smallest known insects.
Acraspis pezomachoides
Acraspis pezomachoides is a gall-inducing cynipid wasp in the family Cynipidae. Like other members of the genus Acraspis, it induces distinctive galls on oak trees (Quercus spp.). The species was described by Osten Sacken in 1862. Specific gall morphology and host associations for this species are not well documented in the provided sources, though the genus is known for producing structurally complex galls on white oaks.
Acraspis prinoides
Acraspis prinoides is a species of gall wasp in the family Cynipidae. Like other members of its genus, it induces characteristic galls on oak trees. The species is part of a diverse group of Cynipidae that exhibit highly specialized relationships with their host plants, with each species typically inducing galls of distinctive morphology on specific oak species or groups.
Acrisis
Acrisis is a genus of parasitoid wasps in the family Braconidae, first described by Förster in 1862. These insects belong to the superfamily Ichneumonoidea, one of the most diverse groups of parasitoid wasps. Very little is known about the biology of this genus, with only one observation documented on iNaturalist. The genus is recorded from Norway and Sweden.
Acroclisoides
Acroclisoides is a genus of chalcid wasps in the family Pteromalidae, established in 1915. Species within this genus are obligate hyperparasitoids that attack the pupal stage of scelionid primary parasitoids developing within pentatomid (stink bug) eggs. The genus has a broad geographic distribution spanning the Oriental, Afrotropical, Australian, and Holarctic regions. Acroclisoides sinicus, the most studied species, has recently expanded from Asia to Europe and North America, where it poses potential risks to biological control programs targeting invasive stink bugs such as Halyomorpha halys.
Acroricnus stylator aequatus
Acroricnus stylator aequatus is a subspecies of ichneumon wasp in the family Ichneumonidae. The genus Acroricnus is documented as a parasite of mud dauber wasp nests, specifically attacking the Black and Yellow Mud Dauber (Sceliphron caementarium). This subspecies was originally described by Thomas Say in 1835. Very little species-specific information is available in the provided sources, with most biological knowledge inferred from genus-level documentation.
Acroricnus stylator edwardsii
Acroricnus stylator edwardsii is a subspecies of ichneumon wasp in the family Ichneumonidae. It is known as a parasite of mud dauber wasps, specifically targeting the nests of the Black and Yellow Mud Dauber (Sceliphron caementarium). The species was described by Cresson in 1879. Like other members of the genus Acroricnus, it likely possesses the elongated body and prominent ovipositor characteristic of ichneumon wasps that parasitize concealed hosts in mud nests or wood.
Acroricnus stylator niger
Acroricnus stylator niger is a subspecies of ichneumonid wasp in the genus Acroricnus. It is known from Belgium and Denmark, with records from both the Flemish and Walloon regions of Belgium. The species belongs to a genus whose members are parasitoids of mud dauber nests, including those of the Black and Yellow Mud Dauber (Sceliphron caementarium).
Acrotaphus fuscipennis
Acrotaphus fuscipennis is a species of ichneumon wasp in the family Ichneumonidae, first described by Cresson in 1865. The genus Acrotaphus comprises parasitoid wasps that attack spiders. A. fuscipennis is one of approximately 8 species in the genus recorded from North America. Like other members of Acrotaphus, this species is presumed to be an ectoparasitoid of orb-weaving spiders (Araneidae), though specific host records for A. fuscipennis itself appear to be lacking in published literature.
Acrotomus
Acrotomus is a genus of parasitoid wasps in the family Ichneumonidae, established by Holmgren in 1857. The genus is recorded from Scandinavia, with confirmed presence in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. As ichneumonids, members of this genus are presumed to be parasitoids of other insects, though specific host associations remain poorly documented.
Adelencyrtus intersectus
Adelencyrtus intersectus is a species of parasitic wasp in the family Encyrtidae, originally described as Encyrtus intersectus by Fonscolombe in 1832. The species has been subject to taxonomic revision, with some sources listing it as a synonym of Epitetracnemus intersectus while Catalogue of Life maintains it as an accepted species within Adelencyrtus. It is known from Canada with records from British Columbia, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec.
Adelesta nova
Adelesta nova is a species of sawfly in the family Tenthredinidae, first described by Norton in 1867. It belongs to a group of herbivorous insects commonly known as sawflies, which are distinguished from other Hymenoptera by their broad connection between thorax and abdomen (lacking the wasp waist). The species has been recorded in eastern Canada.
Adelius floridensis
Adelius floridensis is a species of parasitoid wasp in the family Braconidae, described by Shimbori and Shaw in 2019. The genus Adelius comprises small braconid wasps that are parasitoids of lepidopteran larvae. Species in this genus are generally poorly known, with limited published information on their biology and distribution. The specific epithet "floridensis" indicates a connection to Florida, though the precise type locality and host associations for this species remain undocumented in readily accessible literature.
Adialytus
A genus of aphid parasitoid wasps in the family Braconidae, subfamily Aphidiinae. Species within this genus are solitary, koinobiont endoparasitoids of aphids (Aphididae), developing within living hosts. The genus is represented by four species in Europe, with records from Turkey, Ukraine, and Scandinavia. Members are of economic interest as potential biological control agents of pest aphids on crops and woody plants.
Afrida
Afrida is a genus of parasitic wasps in the family Encyrtidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea). The genus is represented in the University of California, Riverside (UCR) entomology collection, which holds one of the largest and most important Encyrtidae collections globally. Specimens of Afrida in this collection were sorted to genus level by J. Noyes in 1998 as part of a major reorganization effort. The UCR collection contains representatives of 261 valid encyrtid genera, with many undetermined specimens requiring further taxonomic study.
Agaonidae
fig wasps
Agaonidae is a family of minute chalcidoid wasps comprising the pollinating fig wasps, which maintain an obligate mutualism with Ficus species. Females are winged and darkly pigmented, while males are typically wingless and pale. The family has undergone significant taxonomic revision based on molecular phylogenetics, with former subfamilies Epichrysomallinae, Otitesellinae, Sycoecinae, Sycoryctinae, and Sycophaginae excluded and transferred to other families.
Agapostemon obliquus
Oblique Sweat Bee
Agapostemon obliquus is a species of sweat bee in the family Halictidae. It is one of approximately 40-45 species in the genus Agapostemon, which are collectively known as metallic green sweat bees. The species is found in North America and Middle America. Like other members of its genus, it exhibits the characteristic bright metallic green coloration that makes Agapostemon bees visually distinctive and frequently mistaken for cuckoo wasps.
Agathilla bradleyi
Agathilla bradleyi is a species of ichneumon wasp in the family Ichneumonidae, described by Viereck in 1905. It belongs to the genus Agathilla, a group of parasitoid wasps within the superfamily Ichneumonoidea. The species is part of the diverse Hymenoptera fauna of North America. Like other ichneumonids, it is presumed to be a parasitoid, though specific host associations and detailed biology remain poorly documented.
Ageniaspis
Ageniaspis is a genus of polyembryonic encyrtid parasitoid wasps in the family Encyrtidae. The genus contains species that are important biological control agents, particularly Ageniaspis citricola, which has been widely introduced for classical biological control of the citrus leafminer (Phyllocnistis citrella) in multiple countries including the United States, Brazil, and Tunisia. Another species, Ageniaspis fuscicollis, is a parasitoid of the apple ermine moth (Yponomeuta malinellus). Species in this genus exhibit arrhenotokous parthenogenesis and are characterized by their ability to produce multiple offspring from single eggs through polyembryony.
Ageniella accepta
Ageniella accepta is a small spider wasp (family Pompilidae) found across the southern United States and Mexico. Females exhibit striking ant-mimicry through orange-brown coloration and dark wing bands that resemble the constricted waist of ants. The species is part of the 'accepta species group' alongside A. conflicta and A. blaisdelli, with which it shares similar morphology and biology. Females hunt spiders to provision nests for their larvae.
Ageniella agenioides
Ageniella agenioides is a species of spider wasp in the family Pompilidae. The genus Ageniella includes small species that exhibit ant-mimicry, with females typically displaying orange and brown coloration with banded wings. Species-level identification within Ageniella is challenging and often requires expert examination rather than field observation alone. The genus as a whole is poorly documented, and many aspects of species-specific biology remain unknown.
Ageniella arcuata
Ageniella arcuata is a small spider wasp in the family Pompilidae, described by Banks in 1910. It belongs to the "accepta species group" of Ageniella, a complex of morphologically similar species that includes A. conflicta and A. blaisdelli. Like other members of this genus, it is likely a solitary hunter that provisions nests with paralyzed spiders for its larval offspring. The species is poorly documented in the scientific literature, with most biological details remaining unstudied.
Ageniella longula
Ageniella longula is a species of spider wasp in the family Pompilidae. As with other members of the genus Ageniella, it likely exhibits ant-mimicry in females, with elongated legs and banded wings that create the illusion of ant-like body segmentation. The species belongs to the accepta species group, which includes at least three North American species characterized by small size and distinctive wing patterns.
Ageniella mintaka
Ageniella mintaka is a species of spider wasp in the family Pompilidae, first described by Brimley in 1928. It belongs to the genus Ageniella, which includes small wasps known for ant-mimicry and predation on spiders. The species is part of the 'accepta species group' within the genus. Like congeners, females are likely orange and brown with banded wings, while males differ markedly in coloration.
Ageniella reynoldsi
Ageniella reynoldsi is a species of spider wasp in the family Pompilidae, first described by Banks in 1933. Like other members of the genus Ageniella, it is a small parasitoid wasp that hunts spiders to provision nests for its larval offspring. The species is part of the 'accepta species group' within Ageniella, which includes several morphologically similar species that can be difficult to distinguish from images alone. Very few observations of this species have been recorded, with only three observations documented on iNaturalist.
Ageniellini
Mud-nesting Spider Wasps
Ageniellini is a cosmopolitan tribe of spider wasps (subfamily Pepsinae) comprising 17 genera. Members are commonly known as mud-nesting spider wasps due to their frequent construction of thimble-shaped mud nests, often communally. The tribe exhibits exceptional behavioral diversity, with three distinct nesting strategies: mud nest construction, dry soil excavation, and kleptoparasitic nest usurpation. These strategies have evolved independently multiple times from nest-constructing ancestors. Like all Pompilidae, females provision nests with paralyzed spiders as larval food, with most Ageniellini species characteristically removing spider legs before transport.
Agenioideus birkmanni
Agenioideus birkmanni is a spider wasp in the family Pompilidae, first described by Banks in 1910. As a member of the genus Agenioideus, it belongs to a group of small to medium-sized wasps that paralyze spiders to provision nests for their larvae. The species is part of a Nearctic genus with approximately 15 recognized species, most of which are poorly known biologically. No specific behavioral or ecological observations have been documented for this particular species.
Aglaostigma rubens
A species of sawfly in the family Tenthredinidae. Known from limited records in western North America, primarily British Columbia, Canada. As with other tenthredinids, the larvae likely feed on plant foliage, though specific host associations remain undocumented.
Alabagrus stigma
Alabagrus stigma is a species of parasitoid wasp in the family Braconidae, first described by Brullé in 1846. As a member of the genus Alabagrus, it belongs to a group of braconid wasps known for their role as parasitoids of other insects. The species is documented in the Catalogue of Life and NCBI Taxonomy databases, with 35 observations recorded on iNaturalist. Specific ecological and biological details remain limited in available sources.
Alabagrus texanus
Alabagrus texanus is a species of braconid wasp first described by Cresson in 1872. It belongs to the family Braconidae, a large group of parasitoid wasps that play important roles in biological control. The species is known from North America, with the specific epithet 'texanus' suggesting a connection to Texas, though its precise distribution and biology remain poorly documented in available sources.
Alaptus eriococci
Fairyfly
Alaptus eriococci Girault, 1908 is a species of fairyfly in the family Mymaridae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea). The species was described by Girault in 1908 and a lectotype was designated by Triapitsyn in 2017 during a comprehensive revision of the Holarctic Alaptus fauna. Like other members of this genus, it is an egg parasitoid, though specific host records for this species remain limited in the available literature. The species name "eriococci" suggests an association with scale insects in the family Eriococcidae.
Aleiodes accohannocki
Aleiodes accohannocki is a species of braconid wasp in the subfamily Rogadinae. The species epithet honors the Accohannock people, an indigenous group from the Chesapeake Bay region. Like other members of the genus Aleiodes, it is a parasitoid wasp that develops within host caterpillars. The species was described by Shaw and colleagues as part of extensive taxonomic work on the genus Aleiodes, which has seen many new species described from the Americas in recent decades.
Aleiodes burrus
Aleiodes burrus is a species of parasitoid wasp in the family Braconidae, first described by Cresson in 1869. Like other members of the genus Aleiodes, it is a koinobiont endoparasitoid of caterpillars. The species is part of a large genus containing numerous species that mummify their hosts. Specific biological details for A. burrus remain poorly documented in published literature.
Aleiodes graphicus
Aleiodes graphicus is a parasitoid wasp species in the family Braconidae, first described by Cresson in 1872. It belongs to the genus Aleiodes, commonly known as "mummy-making wasps" for their habit of mummifying host caterpillars. The species is part of a diverse group of rogadine braconids that parasitize lepidopteran larvae. Like other Aleiodes species, it is presumed to be a koinobiont endoparasitoid, developing inside living hosts before emerging.
Aleiodes malacosomatos
Tent Caterpillar Mummy Wasp
Aleiodes malacosomatos is a parasitoid wasp in the family Braconidae, first described by Mason in 1979. The common name "Tent Caterpillar Mummy Wasp" reflects its parasitic relationship with tent caterpillars (Malacosoma spp.), a genus of lappet moths. Like other members of the genus Aleiodes, this species is a koinobiont endoparasitoid that develops inside living caterpillars, eventually killing and mummifying the host. The species is part of a diverse genus of mummy-wasps that have gained scientific and public attention for their distinctive biology and, in some cases, celebrity-inspired species names.
Aleiodes pseudoterminalis
Aleiodes pseudoterminalis is a species of parasitoid wasp in the family Braconidae, described by Marsh and Shaw in 2001. The species belongs to the genus Aleiodes, commonly known as mummy-making wasps due to their distinctive life history where parasitized caterpillars become desiccated and mummified. Like other members of this genus, it is presumed to be a koinobiont endoparasitoid of lepidopteran larvae, though specific host records for this species have not been documented in the available literature.
Aleiodes terminalis
Terminal Mummy Wasp
Aleiodes terminalis is a species of mummy wasp in the family Braconidae, first described by Cresson in 1869. Like other members of the genus Aleiodes, it is a koinobiont endoparasitoid that develops inside living caterpillar hosts. The species is part of a diverse radiation of Aleiodes wasps that exhibit the distinctive trait of causing host caterpillars to mummify after the wasp larva emerges. It is one of the earlier-described species in a genus that has seen extensive taxonomic revision and species discovery in recent decades.
Aleiodes texanus
Aleiodes texanus is a species of parasitoid wasp in the family Braconidae, first described by Cresson in 1869. Like other members of the genus Aleiodes, it is a koinobiont endoparasitoid that develops inside host caterpillars, eventually killing and mummifying them. The species is known from limited records, with at least one observation documented on iNaturalist. The genus Aleiodes has been extensively studied in tropical regions, with many new species described from Ecuador and other Neotropical areas, though A. texanus appears to be a more temperate North American species based on its original description.
Aliolus
Aliolus is a genus of parasitoid wasps in the family Braconidae, established by Thomas Say in 1836. These wasps are members of the diverse braconid lineage, which contains thousands of species primarily known for their role as parasitoids of other insects. The genus has been subject to taxonomic revision, with some sources treating it as a subgenus of Eubazus. Available occurrence records are sparse, with limited observational data documented.
Allantus
Allantus is a genus of sawflies in the family Tenthredinidae. Members of this genus are herbivorous, with larvae feeding on various plants including roses, buckwheat, and dock weeds. Some species are significant agricultural pests, while others have been investigated as potential biological control agents for invasive weeds. The genus is distributed across the Holarctic region, with species found in Europe, Asia, and North America.
Allantus basalis
Caledonian Spindler
Allantus basalis is a sawfly species in the family Tenthredinidae. The species was originally described as Tenthredo basalis by Klug in 1818. It is known from parts of Europe and Canada, with records from Norway, Sweden, and eastern Canadian provinces including Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. Sawflies in this genus are herbivorous, with larvae typically feeding on plant foliage.
Allantus cinctus
Curled rose sawfly, Banded rose sawfly
Allantus cinctus, commonly known as the curled rose sawfly or banded rose sawfly, is a species of sawfly in the family Tenthredinidae. The larvae are significant defoliators of rose plants, feeding on leaf margins and capable of reducing foliage to mid-veins. When not feeding, larvae curl tightly on leaf undersides or buds, providing effective camouflage. The species produces two generations per year in temperate regions, with larvae boring into twigs to pupate.
Allantus nigritibialis
Allantus nigritibialis is a sawfly species in the family Tenthredinidae, described by Rohwer in 1911. Like other members of the genus Allantus, this species likely has larvae that feed on rose foliage, though specific life history details for this particular species are poorly documented. Adult sawflies are small wasp-like insects with saw-like ovipositors used to insert eggs into plant tissue. The species name 'nigritibialis' refers to dark or black tibiae (leg segments), suggesting a distinguishing color pattern on the legs.