Syntexis libocedrii

Cedar wood wasp
Syntexis libocedrii[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Suborder: Symphyta
Superfamily: Anaxyeloidea
Family: Anaxyelidae
Genus: Syntexis
Species: S. libocedrii
Binomial name
Syntexis libocedrii
Rohwer, 1915

The Anaxyelidae are a wood wasp family within the Symphyta, containing only a single living species, Syntexis libocedrii, (also called the cedar wood wasp or incense-cedar wood wasp), though the family has an extensive Mesozoic fossil record; this species is thus a "living fossil". It has the remarkable behavior of ovipositing only in recently burnt incense-cedar (Calocedrus), red cedar (Thuja) or juniper (Juniperus); the wood is often still smoldering when the wasp is laying its eggs, and the larvae develop in the wood.[2] It occurs from the mountains of central California to southern British Columbia, but is very rarely seen, except by firefighters.

References

  1. ↑ Seltmann 2004, p. 396
  2. ↑ Schiff, N.M. (December 2000). "Insects associated with forest fires in Northern California and Oregon". Entomological Society of America meeting. Montreal.

Bibliography

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