New findings of twisted-wing parasites (Strepsiptera) in Alaska

Strepsipterans are a group of insects with a gruesome life history and an enigmatic evolutionary past. Called ‘twisted-wing parasites’, they are minute parasitoids with a very distinct morphology (Figure 1). Alternatively thought to be related to ichneumon wasps, Diptera (flies), Coleoptera (beetles), and even Neuroptera (net-winged insects) (Pohl and Beutel, 2013); the latest genetic and morphological data support the sister order relationship of Strepsiptera and Coleoptera (Niehuis et al., 2012). Strepsipterans are highly modified, males having two hind wings and halteres instead of front wings or elytra. Unlike most parasitoids, they develop inside active, living insects who are sexually sterilized but not killed until or after emergence (Kathirithamby et al., 2015).