Lygaeidae

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: Paraneoptera
Superordo: Condylognatha
Ordo: Hemiptera
Subordo: Heteroptera
Infraordo: Pentatomomorpha
Superfamilia: Lygaeoidea

Familia: Lygaeidae
Subfamiliae: Ischnorhynchinae – Lygaeinae – †Lygaenocorinae – Orsillinae

Genus incertae sedis: †Lygaeites
Name

Lygaeidae Schilling, 1829
References
Primary references

Schilling, P.S. 1829. Beiträge zur Entomologie besonders im Bezug auf die schlesische Fauna. 35, 37

Additional references

Hahn, C.W. 1833. Die Wanzenartigen Insekten. Nurnberg: C. H. Zeh'schen Buchhandlung 231

Vernacular names
العربية: متخفيضات
català: Ligeids
Deutsch: Bodenwanzen
English: Milkweed bugs
español: Ligeidos
فارسی: سن‌های بذرخوار
suomi: Varjoluteet
français: punaises
עברית: פנדוריים
magyar: Bodobácsok
italiano: Ligeidi
lietuvių: Tikrosios dirvablakės
latviešu: Zemesblaktis
Nederlands: Bodemwantsen
norsk: Frøteger
Diné bizaad: Chʼosh áłtʼą́ą́ʼígíí
polski: Zwińcowate
português: Ligeídeos
русский: Наземники
svenska: Fröskinnbaggar

The Lygaeidae are a family in the Hemiptera (true bugs), with more than 110 genera in four subfamilies. The family is commonly referred to as seed bugs, and less commonly, milkweed bugs, or ground bugs.[1] However, while many of the species feed on seeds, some feed on sap (mucivory) or seed pods, others are omnivores and a few, such as the wekiu bug, are carnivores that feed exclusively on insects.[2][3] Insects in this family are distributed across the world, including throughout North America.[4] The family was vastly larger, but numerous former subfamilies have been removed and given independent family status, including the Artheneidae, Blissidae, Cryptorhamphidae, Cymidae, Geocoridae, Heterogastridae, Ninidae, Oxycarenidae and Rhyparochromidae, which together constituted well over half of the former family.[5][6]

The bizarre and mysterious beetle-like Psamminae were formerly often placed in the Piesmatidae, but this is almost certainly incorrect. Their true affiliations, however, are not entirely resolved to satisfaction.[7]

Distinguishing Characteristics

Lygaeidae are oval or elongate in body shape and have four-segmented antennae.[8] Lygaeidae can be distinguished from Miridae (plant bugs) by the presence of ocelli, or simple eyes. They are distinguished from Coreidae (squash bugs) by the number of veins in the membrane of the front wings, as Lygaeidae have only four or five veins.[9]
Subfamilies and selected genera

An incomplete list of Lygaeidae genera is subdivided as:[10][11]

subfamily Ischnorhynchinae Stål, 1872

Crompus Stål, 1874
Kleidocerys Stephens, 1829

subfamily Lygaeinae Schilling, 1829

Lygaeus Fabricius, 1794
Oncopeltus Stål, 1868
Melanocoryphus Stål, 1872
Spilostethus Stål, 1868
Tropidothorax Bergroth, 1894

subfamily Orsillinae Stål, 1872

Nysius Dallas, 1852
Orsillus Dallas, 1852

subfamily † Lygaenocorinae
Unplaced genera

Lygaeites Heer, 1853

The Pachygronthinae Stål, 1865 (type genus Pachygrontha Germar, 1840) may be placed here[10] or elevated to the family Pachygronthidae.[11]

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lygaeidae.

Edde, Peter A. (27 August 2021). "2 - Arthropod pests of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.)". Field Crop Arthropod Pests of Economic Importance: 74–139. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-818621-3.00009-4. ISBN 9780128186213.
Gillespie, David R. (1 January 2017). "Omnivory – A Flexible Feeding Strategy". Reference Module in Life Sciences. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-809633-8.12260-5. ISBN 9780128096338.
Eiben, Jesse A.; Rubinoff, Daniel (December 2010). "Life history and captive rearing of the Wekiu bug (Nysius wekiuicola, Lygaeidae), an alpine carnivore endemic to the Mauna Kea volcano of Hawaii". Journal of Insect Conservation. 14 (6): 701–709. doi:10.1007/s10841-010-9298-y. S2CID 44239028.
"Family Lygaeidae - Seed Bugs". bugguide.net.
Henry, T.J. (1997). "Phylogenetic analysis of family groups within the infraorder Pentatomomorpha (Hemiptera: Heteroptera), with emphasis on the Lygaeoidea". Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 90 (3): 275–301. doi:10.1093/aesa/90.3.275.
Cassis G., Gross G.F. (2002). Zoological Catalogue of Australia: Hemiptera: Heteroptera (Pentatomomorpha). CSIRO Publishing. p. 157. ISBN 9780643068759.
David A. Grimaldi & Michael S. Engel (2007). "An unusual, primitive Piesmatidae (Insecta: Heteroptera) in Cretaceous amber from Myanmar (Burma)" (PDF). American Museum Novitates (3611): 1–17. doi:10.1206/0003-0082(2008)3611[1:AUPPIH]2.0.CO;2. S2CID 86107041.
Slater, James Alexander (1995). A catalogue of the Lygaeidae of the world (1960-1994). New York, N.Y.: New York Entomological Society. ISBN 978-0-913-424-16-2.
"Family Lygaeidae". ENT 425 - General Entomology.
BioLb.cz: family ground bugs: Lygaeidae Schilling, 1829 (retrieved 26 October 2021)
Dellapé, Pablo M.; Henry, Thomas J. (2019). "family Lygaeidae Schilling, 1829". Lygaeoidea Species File. Retrieved 2019-06-19.