Talk:Strepsiptera

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Article Grading: The following comments were left by the quality and importance raters: (edit · refresh) Is it really correct to call the Stepsiptera "parasitoids"? Parasitoids (almost) invariably kill their host. I don't believe this to be the case with strepsipterans, except for a few of the most primitive sorts. It might be more accurate to refer to them simply as parasites (and as true parasites of other insects, rather a rarity). But I defer to any professional entomologists who might think otherwise.

[edit] Parasite vs Parasitoid

Aren't they parasites rather than parasitoids? I'm pretty sure they don't typically kill their host. --152.1.172.167 17:54, 28 October 2007 (UTC)

Thanks for pointing out. Resh, V. H. & R. T. Cardé (Editors) 2003. Encyclopedia of Insects. Academic Press. notes that

Strepsiptera. Strepsiptera form an enigmatic order of nearly 400 species of highly modified endoparasites,

—page 893

and

Strepsiptera (twisted-winged parasites) is a cosmopolitan order of small insects (males, 1–7 mm; females, 2–30 mm) that are obligate insect endoparasites.

—p. 1094

So the correction is made. Shyamal 13:29, 16 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Contradiction

The article states strepsiptera are "obligate" and "endoparasitic". I'm under the impression obligate parasites cannot live outside their host' body, yet strepsiptera routinely live outside the host as both larvae and adults. Ditto "endoparasites." (In any case, is not "obligate endoparasite" redundant?

Compounding the errors is the (hyperlinked) phrase "on other insects" which link leads to "Entomophagous parasite", yet another type of parasite. That article is riddled with errors and contradictions as well. I'm not an expert, and I guess we need one.Nickrz (talk) 00:10, 30 March 2008 (UTC)

"Obligate" is usually used in the sense of being the opposite of "opportunistic" (or facultative). Endoparasites, including those of humans routinely spend a part of their life cycle outside their hosts - eggs and larvae of tapeworms for instance. Shyamal (talk) 02:44, 30 March 2008 (UTC)

Have read some of the sources and rewritten some parts. Shyamal (talk) 07:37, 30 March 2008 (UTC)