Dryinidae
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 Typical female dryinid
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Anteoninae |
Dryinidae is a family of hymenopteran insects with about 1400 described species found worldwide. These are solitary wasps whose larvae are parasitoids on other insects. Some species target Coleoptera and Lepidoptera larvae but the commonest hosts are Hemiptera, especially aphids.
Adults of these insects are generally fairly small, to a maximum length of 10 mm. Males are usually fully winged but females are often completely wingless and closely resemble ants. It has been suggested that this is a form of aggressive mimicry: the aphids parasitized by many dryinids are often attended by ants which feed on the honeydew they secrete and actively defend the aphids from predators and parasites but will tolerate the female dryinids as they are assumed to be ants.
The eggs are injected into the host using a sharp ovipositor and the larva spends its early stages feeding internally on the host but when larger it starts to protude from the abdomen of the host and spins a case to protect its vulnerable body while continuing to feed on the host, which invariably is eventually killed.
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