Xiphydriidae are a family of
wood wasps that includes around 150 species. They are located all over the world including North and South America, Australia, Europe, and others.[1] Xiphydriidae larvae are wood borers in dead trees or branches of a range of trees.[2] They are characterized as having long and skinny necks with dome-shaped heads.[3] The oldest fossils of the group are from the mid Cretaceous.[4]
Genera
These 29 genera belong to the family Xiphydriidae:[5]
Most of the species of Xiphydriidae have antennae that are filiform.[3] The antennal segments vary in number ranging from 14 to 22.[3] The maxillary and labial palpi shape and length varies by species. They have an occipital carina which is a ridge in the back of the head.[3] The head is somewhat spherical and is shiny.[6]
Thorax
The pronotum is medially constricted in Xiphydriidae.[6] The defined axillae completely separates the scutum laterally from the mesoscutellum.[7] Parts of the thorax for Xiphydriidae are generally smooth and shiny.[3]
Abdomen
The segment of the abdomen called the gaster can have an orange, red, or yellow coloring pattern.[7]
A study by David R. Smith broke the Xiphydriidae into different groups by their abdomen. The groups were as follows:
Xiphydriidae that have a maxillary palpus segmented into 7.[3]
Xiphydriidae that have short maxillary palpi and contain female fore claws with inner tooth.[3]
Xiphydriidae that have short maxillary palpi and also contain claws of both sexes with inner tooth.[3]
Life cycle and development
Larva
The Xiphydriidae larvae phytophagous, meaning bore into dead or weak trees and plants.[7] When they are buried in these trees, they rely on symbiotic fungi for food in the tunnels that they made.[1] The larva either do not have legs or they have vestigial legs. During the larval stage, the head of Xiphydriidae is as long as broad.[8] As a larva, the antenna contains either three or four segments. The first segment of the antenna does not have setae and is not enlarged.[8]
Adult
Adults are 6-21mm long. Adult Xiphydriidae are most commonly found in shadowy places and run on the surface of leaves.[9] The adults have heads that are spherical which are attached to long and skinny necks.[3]
Ecology
Xiphydriidae bore and feed into dying or weakened trees so they do not have a negative effect to the environment.[10] They can be a secondary pest to humans because of the dead wood people may bring into their homes.[8] Xiphydriidae can be a host for parasitoid Aulacidae and they emerge from larvae that are fully grown.[11]
In Japan, female Xiphydriidae were dissected and fungal spores were found.[12] The spores were 5 to 30 micrometers in diameter and had a globular shape. Mucus was also in the glandular organs of some of the wood wasps.[12]
Jennings, J. T.; Austin, A. D. & Bashford, R. (2009). "First record of the woodwasp family Xiphydriidae from Tasmania with a description of a new species and host record". Australian Journal of Entomology. 48: 25–28.