Aculeata
Vespula vulgaris
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hymenoptera
Suborder:	Apocrita
Infraorder:	Aculeata (but see text)
Superfamilies
Apoidea Chrysidoidea Vespoidea Binomial name Vespula vulgaris (Linnaeus, 1758) The common wasp, Vespula vulgaris is a wasp found in much of the Northern Hemisphere, and introduced to Australia and New Zealand. ... Scientific classification redirects here. ... For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation). ... Subphyla and Classes Subphylum Trilobitomorpha Trilobita - trilobites (extinct) Subphylum Chelicerata Arachnida - spiders,scorpions, etc. ... Orders Subclass Apterygota Archaeognatha (bristletails) Thysanura (silverfish) Subclass Pterygota Infraclass Paleoptera (Probably paraphyletic) Ephemeroptera (mayflies) Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) Infraclass Neoptera Superorder Exopterygota Grylloblattodea (ice-crawlers) Mantophasmatodea (gladiators) Plecoptera (stoneflies) Embioptera (webspinners) Zoraptera (angel insects) Dermaptera (earwigs) Orthoptera (grasshoppers, etc) Phasmatodea (stick insects) Blattodea (cockroaches) Isoptera (termites) Mantodea (mantids) Psocoptera... Suborders Apocrita Symphyta Hymenoptera is one of the larger orders of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. ... Superfamilies Apoidea Ceraphronoidea Chalcidoidea Chrysidoidea Cynipoidea Evanioidea Ichneumonoidea Megalyroidea Proctotrupoidea Sphecoidea Stephanoidea Triganalyoidea Vespoidea Many families, see article Apocrita is a suborder of insects in the order Hymenoptera. ... Scientific classification or biological classification refers to how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Series Spheciformes Anthophila The superfamily Apoidea is a major group within the Hymenoptera, which includes two traditionally-recognized lineages, the sphecoid wasps, and the bees, who appear to be their descendants. ... Vespoidea is a Superfamily of Order Hymenoptera of Class Insecta, although other taxonomic schemes may vary in this categorization. ...

The name Aculeata is used to refer to a monophyletic lineage of Hymenoptera. The word "Aculeata" is a reference to the defining feature of the group, which is the modification of the ovipositor into a stinger (thus, the group could be called stinging wasps). In other words, the structure that was originally used to lay eggs is modified instead to deliver venom. Not all members of the group can sting; in fact, a great many cannot, either because the ovipositor is modified in a different manner (such as for laying eggs in crevices), or because it is lost altogether. This group includes the bees and ants and all of the eusocial Hymenopterans; it is, in fact, commonly believed that the possession of a venomous sting was one of the important features promoting the evolution of social behavior, as it confers a level of anti-predator defense rarely approached by other invertebrates.^{[citation needed]} In phylogenetics, a group is monophyletic (Greek: of one stem) if all organisms in that group are known to have developed from a common ancestral form, and all descendants of that form are included in the group. ... Suborders Apocrita Symphyta Hymenoptera is one of the larger orders of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... It has been suggested that sting (biology) be merged into this article or section. ... Wasp sting, with droplet of venom Venom (literally, poison of animal origin) is any of a variety of toxins used by animals, for the purpose of defense and hunting. ... For other uses, see Western honey bee and Bee (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Ant (disambiguation). ... Eusociality is the phenomenon of reproductive specialisation found in some species of animal, whereby a specialised caste carries out reproduction in a colony of non-reproductive animals. ... Thelenota ananas, a sea cucumber (phylum: Echinodermata) An invertebrate is an animal lacking a vertebral column. ...

Classification

The use of the name Aculeata has a long history at the rank of infraorder or division, and it is only with the advent of modern phylogenetics that the higher classifications of insects (and other organisms) have come to reject artificial (paraphyletic) grouping categories. While the Aculeata is a good natural group, containing all the descendants of a single common ancestor, the supposed "other infraorder" of the Apocrita - the "Parasitica" or "Terebrantia" - is not a natural group, just as the sawflies, the presumed sister taxon of the Hymenoptera, are not. Scientific classification or biological classification refers to how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Phylogenetic groups, or taxa, can be monophyletic, paraphyletic, or polyphyletic. ... Paraphyletic - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Families (Cephoidea)   Cephidae-stem sawflies (Megalodontoidea)   Megalodontidae   Pamphilidae-leaf-rolling      & web-spinning sawflies (Orussoidea)   Orussidae-parasitic wood wasps (Siricoidea)   Siricidae- horntails (Tenthredinoidea)   Argidae-argid sawflies   Blasticotomidae   Cimbicidae-cimbicid sawflies   Diprionidae-conifer sawflies   Pergidae-pergid sawflies   Tenthredinidae-common sawflies (Xyeloidea)   Anaxyelidae-cedar sawflies   Xyelidae-xyelid sawflies   Xiphydriidae-wood wasps Symphyta is... This cladogram shows the relationship among various insect groups. ...

The Aculeata are therefore maintained as a taxon, either at infraorder or division rank or as an unranked clade. However, the "Parasitica" must be considered a paraphyletic assemblage; the taxon "Parasitica" is discarded and their interrelationships are subject of further study. Provisionally, they all can be treated as superfamilies incertae sedis in the Apocrita, without being placed in an infraorder. It is highly likely that at least some of these parasitic wasps - for example the Stephanoidea - are as closely related to the Aculeata as to other "Parasitica". A taxon (plural taxa), or taxonomic unit, is a grouping of organisms (named or unnamed). ... A clade is a term belonging to the discipline of cladistics. ... Paraphyletic - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Incertae sedis—of uncertain position (seat)—is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. ...

On the other hand, among the parasitic wasps the Ichneumonoidea seem particularly closely related to the Aculeata. If taxonomic ranks are used, it may therefore be best to treat the latter as a division and divide the Apocrita into some 6 infraorders representing lineages of about equal standing, one of which would unite the Aculeata and the Ichneumonoidea. Families   Braconidae   Ichneumonidae Ref. ...

Note that having the same taxonomic rank does not imply equal evolutionary standing, whereas placement in the same higher-ranked taxon ideally does, or at least implies that regardless of what specific rank they have, the lower-ranked taxa are all part of the same evolutionary radiation. Therefore, would the Aculeata and the Ichneumonoidea be placed in an infraorder, the former would still be considered a division and the latter a superfamily. Despite having different ranks, they would be members of the same taxon and sister lineages. This article is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

External links

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2007)

• Tree of Life Web Project: Aculeata