The Euparagiinae are a small subfamily of rare wasps in the family
Vespidae containing a single extant genus Euparagia. The group had a cosmopolitan distribution in past geological times extending back to the Early Cretaceous,[1] but is now a geographically
relict taxon known only from the desert regions of the
Southwestern United States and northwestern
Mexico.[2]
This subfamily, with this same rank, has been previously grouped with the
pollen wasps and treated together as the family "Masaridae". Now, the Euparagiinae are considered an independent subfamily and the
sister group of the remainder of the
Vespidae. Their wing venation is unique and differs from all other Vespidae; they also characteristically have a single small pale spot at the posterior edge of the
mesonotum, and the femora and trochanters of the male front legs are modified in species-specific shapes.[3]