Title

Recent Findings of Olixon banskii in the Nearctic with Notes on Its Biology (Hymenoptera: Rhopalosomatidae)

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2014

Abstract

The gryllid parasitoid wasp family Rhopalosomatidae (Aculeata: Vespoidea) is currently represented in the United States by three genera and six species: Liosphex boreus Lohrmann, L. varius Townes, Olixon banksii (Brues), O. melinsula Lohrmann et al., O. testaceum Cameron, and Rhopalosoma nearcticum Brues (Townes, 1977; Lohrmann and Ohl, 2010; Lohrmann et al., 2012). Although known for almost 150 yr now, the family still belongs to the rather poorly studied taxa among Hymenoptera. Whereas recent taxonomic efforts lead to a reasonable understanding of the diversity of rhopalosomatid wasps (e.g., Guidotti, 2007; Krogmann et al., 2009; Lohrmann and Ohl, 2010; Lohrmann, 2011; Lohrmann et al., 2012), their biology remains quite obscure. Hood (1913) first reported the family as a parasite of crickets, but apart from the detailed description of the immature stages of R. nearcticum by Gurney (1953), including information on its host species, there is almost no subsequent information available on the biology of the family.

Comments

Bolker Lohrmann, Zachary H. Falin, Daniel J. Bennett, and Michael S. Engel. Recent Findings of Olixon banskii in the Nearctic with Notes on Its Biology (Hymenoptera: Rhopalosomatidae). Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society. (2014) v. 87, issue 2, pp. 258-260.

DOI

http://dx.doi.org/10.2317/JKES130820.1


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