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Platygastridae

Platygastrid wasps of the Afrotropical region

(Life: Kingdom: Metazoa (animals); Phylum: Arthropoda; Class: Hexapoda; Order: Hymenoptera; Superfamily: Platygastroidea)

ClassificationIdentification keys

Platygastrinae
Sceliotrachelinae

Distribution

Worldwide.

Biology

Platygastridae are mostly koinobiont parasitoids of gall midge (Cecidomyiidae) eggs developing only after the host has reached pupal or prepupal stage. Some are idiobiont parasiotoids of beetle (Coleoptera) or bug (Homoptera) eggs, or Coccoidea or Aleyrodidae larva.

Comments

The classification presented here follows Chen et al. 2021. Finally a comprehensive phylogenetic assessment based on both morphological and molecular data to formulate a revised classification of Platygastroidea has been completed. Murphy et al. (2007) conducted a molecular phylogenetic analysis of the entire Platygastroidea in which the Platygastridae was supported as a monophyletic group nested within Scelionidae. As a result the Scelionidae were retrieved as polyphyletic, but the classification was not revised because of low support for many of the deeper nodes in the cladogram, and inadequate taxon sampling (less than a quarter of the valid genera in the superfamily were included in their analyses). Based on the results of Murphy et al. (2007), Sharkey (2007) formally synonymised Scelionidae with Platygastridae. Subsequently McKellar & Engel (2012) raised the tribes Sparasionini and Nixonini to family level and recognized four families: Nixoniidae, Sparasionidae, Scelionidae and Platygastridae, but in Ortega-Blanca et al. (2014) they treated placement of these two tribes within the Platygastroidea as incertae sedis recognizing only two families: Scelionidae and Platygastridae. These higher classification changes made by Sharkey (2007) and McKellar & Engel (2012) were largely not accepted (Talamas & Buffington, 2015; Popovici et al. 2017). With a revised classification having recently been published supported by robust phylogenetic data (Chen et al. 2021) this latest classification schema is now followed.

References

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Buhl PN. 1997. Four new species of Platygastrinae (Hymenoptera, Platygastridae). Entomofauna, Zeitschrift für Entomologie 18: 93–100.
Buhl PN. 1997. On six new or little known species of Platygastrinae (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae). Phegea 25: 107–115.
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Buhl PN. 2011. Species of Platygastrinae and Sceliotrachelinae from rainforest canopies in Tanzania, with keys to the Afrotropical species of Amblyaspis, Inostemma, Leptacis, Platygaster and Synopeas (Hymenoptera, Platygastridae). Tijdschrift voor Entomologie 154(1): 75-126. https://doi.org/10.1163/22119434-900000309

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Chen H-Y, Lahey Z, Talamas EJ, Valerio AA,  Popovici OA, Musetti L, Klompen H, Polaszek A, Masner L, Austin AD, Johnson NF. 2021. An integrated phylogenetic reassessment of the parasitoid superfamily Platygastroidea (Hymenoptera: Proctotrupomorpha) results in a revised familial classification. Systematic Entomology 46(4): 1088-1113.

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Masner L. & Huggert, L. 1989. World review and keys to genera of the subfamily Inostemmatinae with reassignment of the taxa to the Platygastrinae and Sceliotrachelinae (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae). Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Canada, 147: 1-214.

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Taekul, C., Valerio, A.A., Austin, A.D., Klompen, H. & Johnson, N.F. (2014. Molecular phylogeny of telenomine egg parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae s.l.: Telenominae): evolution of host shifts and implications for classification. Systematic Entomology 39: 24–35.

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van Noort S, Lahey Z, Talamas EJ, Austin AD, Masner L, Polaszek A, Johnson NF 2021. Review of Afrotropical sceliotracheline parasitoid wasps (Hymenoptera, Platygastridae). In: Lahey Z, Talamas E (Eds) Advances in the Systematics of Platygastroidea III. Journal of Hymenoptera Research 87: 115–222. https://doi.org/10.3897/jhr.87.73770

Credits

Photographs © Simon van Noort (Iziko Museums of South Africa).


Web author Simon van Noort (Iziko South African Museum)

 

Citation: van Noort, S. 2024. WaspWeb: Hymenoptera of the World. URL: www.waspweb.org (accessed on <day/month/year>).

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