Scelioninae


Scelioninae is a subfamily of wasps in the family Scelionidae. It is a very large cosmopolitan group of exclusively parasitoid wasps, mostly small, often black, often highly sculptured, usually with geniculate antennae that have a 9- or 10-segmented flagellum. It was formerly classified as a subfamily of the Platygastridae, but in 2021 the family Scelionidae was revived, containing the subfamilies Scelioninae, Teleasinae, and Telenominae.

Biology

They are generally idiobionts, attacking the eggs of many different types of insects, spiders, butterflies and many are important in biological control. Several genera are wingless, and a few attack aquatic insect eggs underwater.