Cheloninae

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Classis: Insecta
Cladus: Dicondylia
Subclassis: Pterygota
Cladus: Metapterygota
Infraclassis: Neoptera
Cladus: Eumetabola
Cladus: Endopterygota
Superordo: Hymenopterida
Ordo: Hymenoptera
Subordo: Apocrita
Superfamilia: Ichneumonoidea

Familia: Braconidae
Subfamilia: Cheloninae
Tribus: Adeliini (Viereck) - Chelonini - Phanerotomini
Overview of genera

Adelius – Ascogaster – Chelonus – Dentigaster – †Diodontogaster – †Eobracon – Leptochelonus – Leptodrepana – Megascogaster – Paradelius – Phanerotoma – Phanerotomella – Sculptomyriola – Sinadelius – Siniphanerotomella
Name

Cheloninae Foerster, 1862:228,243 ("Chelonoidae")

Type genus: Chelonus Panzer, 1806

Synonyms

(per Edmardash & Gadallah, 2019; Broad & al., 2016)

Adeliinae Viereck, 1918:69 ("Adelinae")
Type genus: Adelius Haliday, 1833
Subsequent spellings (cf. Mason, 1985): Acaeliinae, Acoeliinae

References
Primary references

Foerster, [A.] 1862. Synopsis der Familien und Gattungen der Braconen. Verhandlungen des naturhistorischen Vereines der preussischen Rheinlande 19: 225–288. PDF. Reference page.
Mason, W.R.M. 1985. The correct spelling for Adelius Haliday (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 87: 896–896. BHL.
Viereck, H.L. 1918. A list of families and subfamilies of the Ichneumon-flies in the superfamily Ichneumonoidea. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 31: 69–74 BHL.

Additional references
Braet, Y., Rousse, P. & Sharkey, M.J. 2012: New data on African Cheloninae (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) show a strong biogeographic signal for taxa with spined propodea. Zootaxa 3385: 1–32. Preview Reference page.
Broad, G.R., Shaw, M.R. & Godfray, H.C.J. 2016. Checklist of British and Irish Hymenoptera - Braconidae. Biodiversity Data Journal 4: e8151. DOI: 10.3897/BDJ.4.e8151 Open access. Reference page.
Kittel, R.N. & Austin, A.D. 2013 (Online) 2014 (Print). Synopsis of Australian chelonine wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Cheloninae) with description of two new genera. Austral entomology 53(2): 183–202. DOI: 10.1111/aen.12070 Paywall. Reference page.
Dowton, M. & Austin, A.D. 1998. Phylogenetic relationships among the microgastroid wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae): combined analysis of 16S and 28S rDNA genes and morphological data. Molecular phylogenetics and evolution, 10: 354–366. DOI: 10.1006/mpev.1998.0533 Paywall.
Edmardash, Y.A.-E.. Abdel-Dayem, M.S. & Gadallah, N.S. 2011. The subfamily Cheloninae (Hymenoptera, Braconidae) from Egypt, with the description of two new species. ZooKeys, 115: 85–102.DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.115.1186 Paywall.
Edmardash, Y.A. and Gadallah, N.S. 2019. Revision of the Subfamily Cheloninae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from Egypt, with Description of Two New Species. Annales Zoologici 69(2): 339–380. DOI: 10.3161/00034541ANZ2019.69.2.005 Paywall.
Murphy, N. , Banks, J.C., Whitfield, J.B. & Austin, A.D. 2008. Phylogeny of the parasitic microgastroid subfamilies (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) based on sequence data from seven genes, with an improved time estimate of the origin of the lineage. Molecular phylogenetics and evolution, 47: 378–395. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2008.01.022 Paywall.
Walker, A.K. & Huddleston, T. 1987. New Zealand chelonine braconid wasps (Hymenoptera). Journal of natural history, 21: 339–361. DOI: 10.1080/00222938700771061 Paywall

The Cheloninae are a cosmopolitan subfamily of braconid parasitoid wasps.

Description

Most Cheloninae are small and uniformly colored. They have a characteristic metasomal carapace formed from the fusion of the first three tergites.
Biology
Metasomal carapace of a Chelonine
Phanerotoma sp.

They are solitary koinobionts which parasitize Lepidoptera, especially Pyraloidea and Tortricoidea, but also other taxa whose larvae bore in stems, buds or fruits. Chelonines are egg-larval parasitoids, meaning they oviposit into a host egg, but the wasp larvae do not complete development until the caterpillar has hatched and matured. Chelonines carry polydnaviruses which aid in overcoming their hosts' immune system.[1]
Genera

Genera placed in Cheloninae include:

Ascogaster Wesmael, 1835 (paraphyletic?)
Austroascogaster Kittel and Austin, 2014
Chelonus Panzer, 1806
Dentigaster Zettel, 1990
†Diodontogaster Brues, 1933
†Eobracon Cockerell, 1920
Huseyinia Koçak and Kemal, 2008
Leptochelonus Zettel, 1990
Leptodrepana Shaw, 1990
Megascogaster Baker, 1926
Odontosphaeropyx Cameron, 1910
Phanaustrotoma Kittel and Austin, 2014
Phanerotoma Wesmael, 1838
Phanerotomella Szépligeti, 1900
Phanerotomoides Zettel, 1990
Pseudophanerotoma Zettel, 1990
Siniphanerotomella He et al., 1994
Wushenia Zettel, 1990

Previously belonging to the Adeliinae, but now confirmed to be nested within Cheloninae[2] in the tribe Adeliini are:

Adelius Haliday, 1834
Paradelius de Saeger, 1942
Sinadelius He and Chen, 2000
Sculptomyriola Belokobylskij, 1988

References

Murphy, Nicholas; Banks, Jonathan C.; Whitfield, James B.; Austin, Andrew D. (2008-04-01). "Phylogeny of the parasitic microgastroid subfamilies (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) based on sequence data from seven genes, with an improved time estimate of the origin of the lineage". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 47 (1): 378–395. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2008.01.022. PMID 18325792.
Kittel, R.N.; Austin, A.D.; Klopfstein, S. (2016). "Molecular and morphological phylogenetics of chelonine parasitoid wasps (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), with a critical assessment of divergence time estimations". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 101: 224–241. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2016.05.016. PMID 27179700.