Rhyssinae

Rhyssinae is a subfamily of parasitoid wasps in the family Ichneumonidae. It contains eight genera and 259 described species, but there are likely many undiscovered species.^[1][2]

Rhyssella humida

Rhyssinae Temporal range: 47–0 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N Eocene - Present
Rhyssella nitida
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Family:	Ichneumonidae
Subfamily:	Rhyssinae Morley, 1913

All possess long ovipositors, which are used by females to bore into tree trunks to lay eggs on the larvae of horntails and wood-boring beetles.

Females in genus Megarhyssa show very long ovipositors, with the one of M. atrata reaching 14 cm in length.^[3]

Fossil record

The oldest reliable discovery of the subfamily in fossil form was made in a German Messel pit (Eocene, about 47 Ma).^[4]

Genera

The following genera belong to the subfamily Rhyssinae:

• Cyrtorhyssa Baltazar, 1961 ^{i c g}
• Epirhyssa Cresson, 1865 ^{i c g b}
• Lytarmes Cameron, 1899 ^{i c g}
• Megarhyssa Ashmead, 1900 ^{i c g b}
• Myllenyxis Baltazar, 1961 ^{i c g}
• Rhyssa Gravenhorst, 1829 ^{i c g b}
• Rhyssella Rohwer, 1920 ^{i c g b}
• Triancyra Baltazar, 1961 ^{i c g}

Data sources: i = ITIS,^[5] c = Catalogue of Life,^[6] g = GBIF,^[7] b = Bugguide.net^[8]