Megarhyssa

Megarhyssa
Female Megarhyssa greenei
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Ichneumonidae
Subfamily: Rhyssinae
Genus: Megarhyssa
Ashmead, 1900
Synonyms
  • Thalessa Holmgren, 1859 (Preocc.)
  • Megalorhyssa Schulz, 1906
  • Eurhyssa Derksen, 1941
Female Megarhyssa praecellens in China

Megarhyssa, also known as giant ichneumonid wasps, giant ichneumons, or stump stabbers,[1] is a genus of large ichneumon wasps, with some species known for having the longest ovipositors of any insects. They are idiobiont endoparasitoids of the larvae of wood-boring horntail wasps. The ovipositor can be mistaken for a large stinger.[2] This is a genus of holometabolous insects within subfamily Rhyssinae that includes 37 species and belongs to Ichneumonidae, the family of wasps with the highest biodiversity in the world.[3]

  1. ^ Bug of the Month July 2014: Female Stump Stabbers laying eggs!!!, What's That Bug. Accessed 2015-06-07
  2. ^ "Giant Ichneumon Wasp - M. atrata". www.insectidentification.org. InsectIdentification. Retrieved 19 November 2022.
  3. ^ Ilgoo Kang; Huval, Forest; Carlton, Christopher E. (28 March 2023). "Megarhyssa spp., The Giant Ichneumons (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae)".