Myrmeleontoidea is a
neuroptera
The insect order Neuroptera, or net-winged insects, includes the lacewings, mantidflies, antlions, and their relatives. The order consists of some 6,000 species. Neuroptera can be grouped together with the Megaloptera and Raphidioptera in th ...
n superfamily in the clade
Myrmeleontiformia
Myrmeleontiformia is an insect clade in the order Neuroptera, and which was historically treated as a suborder. The phylogeny of the Neuroptera has been explored using mitochondrial DNA sequences, and while issues remain for the order as a whole ...
.
Engel, Winteron, and Breitkreuz (2018) included the following families:
Superfamily Myrmeleontoidea (syn
Nemopteroidea)
* Family
Ascalaphidae
Ascalaphidae is a family of insects in the order Neuroptera, commonly called owlflies; there are some 450 extant species. They are fast-flying crepuscular or diurnal predators of other flying insects, and have large bulging eyes and strongly ...
: owlflies (possibly in Myrmeleontoidea)
* Family †
Babinskaiidae
Babinskaiidae is an extinct family of neuropterans known from the Cretaceous period. They are part of the superfamily Myrmeleontoidea. Their distinguishing characters include: "long filiform antennae, narrowly elongated wings, with features suc ...
* Family
Myrmeleontidae
The antlions are a group of about 2,000 species of insect in the neuropteran family Myrmeleontidae. They are known for the predatory habits of their larvae, which mostly dig pits to trap passing ants or other prey. In North America, the larvae ...
: antlions (includes Palaeoleontidae; possibly in Ascalaphidae)
* Family
Nemopteridae
Nemopteridae, the spoonwings, are a family of neuropteran insects. They are also called thread-winged antlions. They are found in the Ethiopian, Palearctic, Australasian and Neotropical realms but absent in North America (though a fossil has bee ...
: spoonwings etc
* Family
Nymphidae
Nymphidae, sometimes called split-footed lacewings, are a family of winged insects of the order Neuroptera. There are 35 extant species native to Australia and New Guinea.
Nymphidae stand somewhat apart from other living Myrmeleontoidea. The ...
: split-footed lacewings (including Myiodactylidae)
* Family †
Rafaelianidae
References
Insect superfamilies
{{Neuroptera-stub