The Panorpidae are a family of

scorpionflies Mecoptera (from the Greek language, Greek: ''mecos'' = "long", ''ptera'' = "wings") is an Order (biology), order of insects in the superorder Endopterygota with about six hundred species in nine Family (biology), families worldwide. Mecopterans ...

containing more than 480 species. The family is the largest family in Mecoptera, covering approximately 70% species of the order. Species range between 9–25 mm long. These insects have four membranous wings and threadlike antennae. Their elongated faces terminate with mouthparts that are used to feed on dead and dying insects, nectar, and rotting fruit. While in larval form, they scavenge by consuming dead insects on the ground.

Genera

*'' Aulops'' Enderlein, 1910 (two species) *'' Cerapanorpa'' Gao, Ma & Hua, 2016 (22 species) *'' Dicerapanorpa'' Zhong & Hua, 2013 (eight species) *'' Furcatopanorpa'' Ma & Hua, 2011 (one species) *'' Leptopanorpa'' MacLachlan, 1875 (12 species) *'' Neopanorpa'' Weele, 1909 (ca. 170 species) *''

Panorpa ''Panorpa'' is a genus of scorpion-flies that is widely dispersed, especially in the Northern hemisphere. However, they do not occur in western North America. Thirteen species occur in eastern Canada. About 260 species are described as of 2018. ...

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the ...

1758 Events January–March * January 1 – Swedish biologist Carl Linnaeus (Carl von Linné) publishes in Stockholm the first volume (''Animalia'') of the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'', the sta ...

(ca. 260 species) *'' Sinopanorpa'' Cai & Hua in Cai, Huang & Hua, 2008 (three species)

Extinct genera

* †'' Baltipanorpa'' Krzemiński & Soszyńska-Maj, 2012

Baltic amber The Baltic region is home to the largest known deposit of amber, called Baltic amber or succinite. It was produced sometime during the Eocene epoch, but exactly when is controversial. It has been estimated that these forests created more than 1 ...

Eocene The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene' ...

Fossil record

The oldest known species was previously suggested to be '' Jurassipanorpa'' from the

Jiulongshan Formation The Haifanggou Formation (), also known as the Jiulongshan Formation (), is a fossil-bearing rock deposit located near Daohugou () village of Ningcheng County, in Inner Mongolia, northeastern China. The formation consists of coarse conglomerates ...

of Inner Mongolia, China. However, this was later considered an incorrect attribution, making the oldest known records of the family currently from the

, including the extinct genus '' Baltipanorpa'' as well as the living genus ''

''.

References

External links

* * Insect families {{Mecoptera-stub