Ismaridae is a family of insects belonging to the order Hymenoptera. About 50 species are known in this small relictual group; all the species for which the biology is known appear to be hyperparasitoids that parasitize Dryinidae (that attack leafhoppers).
| Ismaridae | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Superfamily: | Diaprioidea |
| Family: | Ismaridae |
| Genera | |
| |
This lineage was formerly included in the family Diapriidae, as the subfamily Ismarinae, but differ from diapriid wasps by lacking a facial projection from which the antenna arise, and characterized by various degrees of fusion of the metasomal terga. The family historically included only two genera, Ismarus and Szelenyioprioides,[1] though the latter genus was recently synonymized with the diapriid genus Spilomicrus,[2] thereby restricting the family to solely Ismarus.[3]