Representative Families
The superfamily mainly includes:
- Chrysididae – Jewel wasps, shiny, often blue, green or coppery, cleptoparasites of bees or digger wasps.
- Bethylidae – Small black or brownish wasps, sometimes winged or wingless, parasitoids of beetle and moth larvae.
- Dryinidae – Wasps with varied forms, often parasites of hemipterans (especially Cicadellidae), sometimes with strong sexual dimorphism.
- Embolemidae, Sclerogibbidae, Plumalexiidae – Rare and little-known families, often highly specialized.
Habitat
Chrysidoidea are found in:
- Dry, sunny areas
- Embankments, rocky slopes, old walls, dead wood
- Habitats rich in host insects (bees, wasps, beetles, leafhoppers…)
Biology
- Cleptoparasitism (e.g., Chrysis lays eggs in the nests of bees or digger wasps)
- Parasitoids of various insects (hymenopterans, beetles, moths, hemipterans…)
- Females equipped with an ovipositor adapted to laying eggs in galleries or on host larvae
- Development often hidden within the host’s nest
Distinctive Features
- Frequent metallic colors (especially in Chrysididae)
- Hard, sculpted cuticle
- Thanatosis behavior (ability to curl into a ball when threatened)
- Very small size (often < 10 mm)
Plumariidae
Scolebythidae
Bethylidae
Chrysididae
Sclerogibbidae
Embolemidae
Dryinidae