Scolebythidae

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: Chrysidoidea

Familia: Scolebythidae
Genera (4 + 9†): Clystopsenella – Pristapenesia – Scolebythus – Ycaploca – †Boreobythus – †Ectenobythus – †Eobythus – †Libanobythus – †Mirabythus – †Necrobythus – †Sphakelobythus – †Uliobythus – †Zapenesia
Name

Scolebythidae Evans, 1963
Type genus: Scolebythus Evans, 1963

References

Azevedo, C.O. 1999: A key to world species of Scolebythidae (Hymenoptera: Chrysidoidea), with description of a new species of Dominibythus from Brazil. Journal of Hymenoptera research, 8: 1–5. Internet Archive
Engel, M.S.; Grimaldi, D.A. 2007: Cretaceous Scolebythidae and phylogeny of the family (Hymenoptera, Chrysidoidea). American Museum novitates, (3568) DOI: 10.1206/0003-0082(2007)475[1:CSAPOT]2.0.CO;2
Engel, M.S.; Ortega-Blanco, J.; McKellar, R.C. 2013: New scolebythid wasps in Cretaceous amber from Spain and Canada, with implications for the phylogeny of the family (Hymenoptera: Scolebythidae). Cretaceous research 46: 31–42. DOI: 10.1016/j.cretres.2013.09.003 Reference page.
Evans, H.E. 1963: A new family of wasps. Psyche, 70: 7–16. DOI: 10.1155/1963/92486
Nagy, C.G. 1975: A new genus of Scolebythidae (Hymenoptera) from South Africa and Australia. Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa, 38(1): 75–78.

The Scolebythidae are a small family of aculeate wasps in the superfamily Chrysidoidea. These chrysidoid wasps are found in Africa, Australia, the Neotropics, north China, Thailand and Fiji. They are parasites on larvae of Cerambycidae and Ptinidae.[1]
Overview

Scolebythidae wasps are gregarious ectoparasitoids of wood-boring beetle larvae. Females dig tunnels through the frass of wood-boring beetles using their mandibles. After reaching the host chamber of the beetle larva, frass is pulled into the chamber before stinging the larva. The female wasp feeds on the hemolymph after biting the integument. This behaviour is probably necessary for egg laying.[2]
Taxonomy

Subfamily Pristapenesiinae Engel et al. 2013
†Boreobythus Engel and Grimaldi 2007 New Jersey amber, Turonian
†Ectenobythus Engel et al. 2013 Spanish amber, Albian
†Eobythus Lacau et al. 2000 Oise amber, France, Ypresian
†Libanobythus Prentice and Poinar 1996 Lebanese amber, Barremian
†Mirabythus Cai et al. 2012 Yixian Formation, China, Aptian
†Nadezhdabythus Zhang, Rasnitsyn, Olmi, Martynova & Perkovsky, 2020 Burmese amber, Myanmar, Cenomanian
†Necrobythus Engel et al. 2013 Canadian amber, Campanian
Pristapenesia Brues 1933 South America and Asia
†Sphakelobythus Engel et al. 2013 Canadian amber, Campanian
†Uliobythus Engel and Grimaldi 2007 Lebanese amber, Barremian
†Zapenesia Engel and Grimaldi 2007 Lebanese amber, Barremian
†Cursoribythus and †Siccibythus from the Burmese amber were originally assigned to this family, but have subsequently been assigned to the Falsiformicidae.
Subfamily Scolebythinae Evans 1963
Clystopsenella Kieffer 1911
Scolebythus Evans 1963
Ycaploca Nagy, 1975, South Africa, Australia

References

Zhang, Qi; Rasnitsyn, Alexandr P.; Wang, Bo; Zhang, Haichun (December 2018). "Hymenoptera (wasps, bees and ants) in mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber: A review of the fauna". Proceedings of the Geologists' Association. 129 (6): 736–747. doi:10.1016/j.pgeola.2018.06.004. S2CID 134358795.
Engel MS, Grimaldi DA (2006). "The First Cretaceous Sclerogibbid Wasp (Hymenoptera: Sclerogibbidae)". American Museum Novitates (3515): 1–7. doi:10.1206/0003-0082(2006)3515[1:TFCSWH]2.0.CO;2. hdl:2246/5792. S2CID 59503176.