| Mantispidae | |
|---|---|
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| Mantispa styriaca | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Neuroptera |
| Superfamily: | Mantispoidea |
| Family: | Mantispidae |
| Subfamilies | |
and seetext | |
| Synonyms | |
Liassochrysidae | |
Mantispidae (/mænˈtɪspədiː/), commonly known asmantidflies,mantispids,mantid lacewings,mantisflies ormantis-flies, is afamily of small to moderate-sizedinsects in the orderNeuroptera. There are manygenera with around 400species worldwide,[1] especially in thetropics andsubtropics. Only five species ofMantispa occur inEurope.[2] As their names suggest, members of the group possessraptorial forelimbs similar to those of thepraying mantis, a case ofconvergent evolution.
About 5–47 mm (0.20–1.85 in) long and with a wingspan of 5–30 mm (0.2–1.2 in), some mantidflies such asClimaciella brunnea,Euclimacia nodosa[3][4] arewaspmimics,[5] but most are brownish with green, yellow and sometimes red hues. The vernacular and scientific names are derived from theirmantis-like appearance, as their spiny "raptorial" front legs are modified to catch small insect prey and are very similar to the front legs of mantids (the only difference is that the pincers lack footpads and are not used for walking at all). The adults arepredatory insects that are oftennocturnal, and are sometimes attracted by porch lights orblacklights. They are usually green, brown, yellow, and sometimes pink, and have four membranous wings which may sometimes be patterned (especially in wasp mimicking species) but are usually clear. Adult mantidflies arepredators of suitably sizedinsects, which they catch as mantids do. However, the underlying mechanisms for the prey capture behavior are different in mantidflies and mantids.[6] Mantidflies are active hunters, but as with other Neuroptera, they are cumbersome fliers.
Symphrasinae larvae are sedentaryparasitoids onbee,wasp orscarab beetle larvae. Larvae of theCalomantispinae arepredators of smallarthropods, and in at least one species they are mobile.Mantispinae have the most specialized larval development among all mantidflies studied to date (the life history of theDrepanicinae remains unknown): their campodeiform larvae seek out femalespiders or theiregg sacs which they then enter; the scarabaeiform larvae then feed on the spider eggs, draining egg contents through a piercing/sucking tube formed by modified mandibles and maxillae, pupating in the egg sac.[1]
First-instar mantispids use two strategies to locate spider eggs: larvae may burrow directly through the silk of egg sacs they find, or they may board and be carried by female spiders prior to sac production (phoresy), entering the sac as it is being constructed. Mantispids that board spiders usually adopt positions on or near thepedicel; some species may enter the spider'sbook lungs. Larvae maintain themselves aboard spiders by feeding on spiderhemolymph. Transfers of larvae from spider to spider are possible during spider mating or cannibalism. All of the major groups of hunting spiders are attacked by spider-boarding mantispids; the egg sacs of web-building species are also entered by egg-sac penetrators.[7]
Among theNeuroptera (which includeslacewings,antlions andowlflies), mantidflies are apparently most closely related to theDilaridae (pleasing lacewings) and the thorny (Rhachiberothidae) and beaded lacewings (Berothidae). These and theprehistoricMesithonidae - probably aparaphyletic assemblage rather than a natural group - form thesuperfamilyMantispoidea.
Many mantidflies are placed in one of the foursubfamilies, of which theSymphrasinae are probably the most distinct and theMantispinae are the most advanced. But a considerable number oftaxa cannot be easily accommodated in this layout, and are therefore better treated asincertae sedis at present.
Some authors have suggested that the extinct two wingedDipteromantispidae known from Cretaceous fossils should be treated as a subfamily of Mantispidae.[8]
Extant taxa based onGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility[9] and extinct taxa based on Jepson, 2015 and subsequent literature.[10]
Auth: Navás, 1909
Auth: Makarkin 1996
Fossil taxa may be of an altogether quitebasal position, for example theJurassicLiassochrysa (about 180 million years old) andPromantispa (about 155 million years old) have been assigned to either a basal position within the group or Drepanicinae, the most basal subfamily within the group. TheEarly JurassicProhemerobius dilaroides (thetype species of the "Prohemerobiidae" assemblage) as well as theLate PermianPermantispa emelyanovi (of the just as likelyparaphyletic "Permithonidae") were suggested to possibly represent ancestral mantidflies.[12] However, later studies found them to be basal members ofPsychopsoidea andNeuroptera respectively.[8]
Most living genera from which fossil species are also known to go back to theMiocene; theOligocene"Climaciella" henrotayi probably does not belong in the living genus. Two fossil species have been described as part of the extant genusDicromantispa,Dicromantispa moronei fromDominican amber andDicromantispa electromexicana fromMexican amber.[1]
The North American species include:
Paraberotha,Retinoberotha andWhalfera were formerly placed here, but have since been recognized asRhachiberothidae.Mantispidiptera are diminutive insects, apparentlyneuropterans of some sort, perhapsHemerobiiformia; their exact affiliation cannot at present be determined because of their oddapomorphies, though they are unlikely to have been mantidflies.[1][12]
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