Menoponidae
Guides
Colpocephalum
Colpocephalum is a genus of chewing lice (order Psocodea: suborder Amblycera) comprising approximately 135 species of avian ectoparasites. The genus was established by Christian Ludwig Nitzsch in 1818, with Colpocephalum zebra Burmeister, 1838 designated as type species by ICZN ruling in 1955. Species parasitize birds across at least 13 orders, representing an unusually broad host distribution among lice. Molecular phylogenetic studies have revealed that Colpocephalum as traditionally circumscribed is not monophyletic, with several distinct lineages corresponding to previously described subgenera or genera.