| Panorpodidae Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| Brachypanorpa montana | |
| Panorpodes komaensis | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Mecoptera |
| Superfamily: | Panorpoidea |
| Family: | Panorpodidae Handlirsch 1920 |
| Genera | |
The Panorpodidae are a small family of scorpionflies. Of the two genera, Brachypanorpa occurs only in the United States, and Panorpodes occurs in East Asia, with a single species in California.[1] Unlike their sister group Panorpidae, the family generally has short jaws, amongst the shortest of all mecopterans. Brachypanorpa is thought to be phytophagous, consuming the epidermis of soft leaves, and a similar diet is suggested for Panorpodes.[2]
Genera
The family contains extant 13 species in two genera:[1]
- Brachypanorpa Carpenter, 1931 (five species: United States)
- Panorpodes MacLachlan, 1875 (eight species: Japan, Korea, California) Fossil species known from Eocene aged Baltic amber
In addition, the following fossil genus is also known:
- †Austropanorpodes Petrulevicius 2009 Laguna del Hunco Formation, Argentina, Eocene (Ypresian)
Characteristics
Panorpode larvae differ significantly from those of other scorpionflies in that they have smooth, glabrous mandibles without molar grinding surfaces or filtering spines, indicating that they do not feed on solid carrion like adjacent families (Panorpidae and Bittacidae). Instead, their shape indicates an adaptability to absorb degraded organic material or plant juices from soil or leaf litter.[3]
References
- 1 2 "Panorpodidae". World Checklist of extant Mecoptera species. Archived from the original on April 8, 2005. Retrieved April 3, 2010.
- ↑ Ma, Na; Huang, Jing; Hua, Baozhen (2013-03-22). Hejnol, Andreas (ed.). "Functional Morphology and Sexual Dimorphism of Mouthparts of the Short-Faced Scorpionfly Panorpodes kuandianensis (Mecoptera: Panorpodidae)". PLOS ONE. 8 (3) e60351. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0060351. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 3606246. PMID 23533677.
- ↑ Jiang, Lu; Hua, Bao-Zhen (2015-12-01). "Functional morphology of the larval mouthparts of Panorpodidae compared with Bittacidae and Panorpidae (Insecta: Mecoptera)". Organisms Diversity & Evolution. 15 (4): 671–679. doi:10.1007/s13127-015-0225-7. ISSN 1618-1077.