Ovoviviparity
Guides
Aclerda
flat grass scales
Aclerda is a genus of scale insects (family Aclerdidae) commonly known as flat grass scales. Species in this genus are legless as adults, with strongly reduced 1-segmented antennae and a unique anal apparatus. They inhabit leaf sheaths of grasses in hot, dry regions. The genus includes both sexually and parthenogenetically reproducing species, with unusual cytogenetic systems including heterochromatinization of one haploid chromosome set in males of some species.
Artemia
brine shrimp
Artemia is a genus of aquatic crustaceans commonly known as brine shrimp, the sole genus in the family Artemiidae. The genus comprises both bisexual and parthenogenetic species with considerable variation in salinity and temperature tolerances among populations. Species show ecological isolation based on lakewater chemistry differences, with competitive hierarchies established between sympatric taxa. Artemia has remained morphologically conservative since the Triassic period.
Blaberidae
Giant Cockroaches, Blaberids
Blaberidae is the second-largest family of cockroaches with over 1,260 species in 170 genera and 14 subfamilies. Members are distinguished as the only ovoviviparous cockroach family, where females retract the ootheca into the body and give birth to live nymphs. The family exhibits exceptional diversity in form and behavior, including burrowing species, conglobulating (ball-rolling) pill roaches, and hissing cockroaches. Many species are kept as pets or feeder insects.
Blaptinae
darkling beetles
Blaptinae is a large subfamily of darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae) containing approximately 283 genera and 4,000 species, classified into 8 tribes. The subfamily was resurrected and redefined in 2021 based on morphological and molecular evidence, with seven tribes transferred from Tenebrioninae. Members are among the most widespread and abundant darkling beetles in arid regions globally, often dominating local invertebrate faunas in desert ecosystems. Ovoviviparity has been documented in at least one tribe (Platynotini), where females carry fully developed first-instar larvae.
Hellinsia
Hellinsia is a genus of plume moths in the family Pterophoridae, established by J.W. Tutt in 1905 and named in honor of entomologist John Hellins. The genus comprises numerous species distributed across the Holarctic region, with documented occurrences in North America, Europe, and Asia. Species identification relies heavily on genitalia morphology and wing pattern characteristics. Notable biological findings include the first documented case of ovoviviparity in an Arctic population of H. albilobata.
Lipoptena depressa
Western American deer ked
Lipoptena depressa, the Western American deer ked, is a blood-feeding louse fly (family Hippoboscidae) and ectoparasite specialized on deer. Adults are initially winged but shed wings upon locating a host, after which they remain permanently on the host animal. The species is native to western North America and is one of three Lipoptena species found on the continent.
Melaphis
staghorn sumac aphid
Melaphis is a genus of woolly aphids in the family Aphididae, subtribe Melaphidina. The genus contains at least three cryptic species in North America: Melaphis rhois (the staghorn sumac aphid), Melaphis asafitchi, and Melaphis minuta. These aphids are notable for inducing galls on sumac and exhibiting ovoviviparity in sexual females.
Melaphis asafitchi
Melaphis asafitchi is a North American aphid species in the subtribe Melaphidina, described in 2018 following molecular and morphometric analysis that revealed cryptic species diversity within what was previously considered Melaphis rhois. It is one of at least three sympatric cryptic melaphidine species on the continent. The species exhibits ovoviviparity in sexual females, a notable reproductive trait among aphids.
Melaphis rhois
Staghorn sumac aphid, Sumac gall aphid
Melaphis rhois is a woolly aphid that induces distinctive galls on sumac leaves (Rhus typhina and R. glabra). It was first described by Asa Fitch in 1866 and has a complex life cycle involving alternation between sumac and moss hosts. The species is part of a cryptic species complex; molecular and morphometric analyses have revealed at least three sympatric species in North America previously grouped under this name. It exhibits exceptionally low genetic diversity and pronounced population structure due to restricted gene flow among isolated galls.
Sarcophaga sarraceniae
Sarcophaga sarraceniae is a flesh fly in the family Sarcophagidae, first described by Riley in 1874. The species name refers to its association with pitcher plants (Sarracenia), indicating a specialized ecological relationship. Like other members of the genus Sarcophaga, this species exhibits the characteristic gray thorax with three longitudinal black stripes and checkered abdominal pattern typical of flesh flies. The specific epithet 'sarraceniae' distinguishes it as one of the few sarcophagid species with a documented specialized association with carnivorous plants.
Thiotrichinae
Thiotrichinae is a subfamily of small moths within the family Gelechiidae (Lepidoptera). The subfamily comprises approximately 180 described species distributed across five genera: Calliprora, Macrenches, Palumbina, Polyhymno, and Thiotricha. Thiotricha is the largest and most morphologically diverse genus, with the majority of species concentrated in the Old World tropics and subtropics. Recent phylogenetic studies have substantially revised the generic classification, synonymizing several genera with Thiotricha and establishing two new genera (Pulchrala, Tenupalpa) to accommodate distinct clades.