The Miridae are a large and diverse insect family at one time known by the taxonomic synonym Capsidae.[1] Species in the family may be referred to as capsid bugs or "mirid bugs". Common names include plant bugs, leaf bugs, and grass bugs. It is the largest family of true bugs belonging to the suborder Heteroptera; it includes over 10,000 known species, and new ones are being described constantly. Most widely known mirids are species that are notorious agricultural pests that pierce plant tissues, feed on the sap, and sometimes transmit viral plant diseases. Some species however, are predatory.

Miridae
Rhabdomiris striatellus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Suborder: Heteroptera
Superfamily: Miroidea
Family: Miridae
Hahn, 1831
Type species
Cimex striatus L.
Subfamilies
  1. Bryocorinae Baerensprung, 1860
  2. Cylapinae Kirkaldy, 1903
  3. Deraeocorinae Douglas & Scott, 1865
  4. Isometopinae Fieber, 1860
  5. Mirinae Hahn, 1833
  6. Orthotylinae Van Duzee, 1916
  7. Phylinae Douglas & Scott, 1865
  8. Psallopinae Schuh, 1976
Synonyms

Capsidae Burmeister, 1835

Description

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A typical mirid species, showing cuneus at the tip of the corium
 
Wing of a species of Miridae, showing cuneus

Miridae are small, terrestrial insects, usually oval-shaped or elongate and measuring less than 12 millimetres (0.5 in) in length. Many of them have a hunched look, because of the shape of the prothorax, which carries the head bent down. Some are brightly coloured and attractively patterned, others drab or dark, most being inconspicuous. Some genera are ant mimics at certain stages of life. Miridae do not have any ocelli. Their rostrum has four segments. One useful feature in identifying members of the family is the presence of a cuneus; it is the triangular tip of the corium, the firm, sclerotized part of the forewing, the hemelytron. The cuneus is visible in nearly all Miridae, and only in a few other Hemiptera, notably the family Anthocoridae, which are not much like the Miridae in other ways. The tarsi almost always have three segments.[2]

Some mirid species

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Creontiades dilutus

Systematics

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This family includes a large number of species, many of which are still unknown, distributed in more than 1,300 genera. The taxonomic tree includes the following subfamilies and numerous tribes:

Globiceps sp. - oviposition (Orthotylini)

Psallopinae

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Auth.: Schuh, 1976

  1. Isometopsallops Herczek & Popov, 1992
  2. Psallops Usinger, 1946
  3. Cylapopsallops Popov & Herczek, 2006
  4. Epigonopsallops Herczek & Popov, 2009

BioLib includes:

  1. Amulacoris Carvalho & China, 1959
  2. Anniessa Kirkaldy, 1903
  3. Auchus Distant, 1893
  4. Bahiarmiris Carvalho, 1977
  5. Brasiliocarnus Kerzhner & Schuh, 1995
  6. Carmelinus Carvalho & Gomes, 1972
  7. Carmelus Drake & Harris, 1932
  8. Chaetophylidea Knight, 1968
  9. Charitides Kerzhner, 1962
  10. Colimacoris Schaffner & Carvalho, 1985
  11. Cylapocerus Carvalho & Fontes, 1968
  12. Dimorphocoris Reuter, 1890
  13. Duckecylapus Carvalho, 1982
  14. Englemania Carvalho, 1985
  15. Eurycipitia Reuter, 1905
  16. Faliscomiris Kerzhner & Schuh, 1998
  17. Fuscus Distant, 1884
  18. Guerrerocoris Carvalho & China, 1959
  19. Gunhadya - monotypic Gunhadya rubrofasciata Distant, 1920
  20. Heterocoris Guérin-Ménéville in Sagra, 1857
  21. Knightocoris Carvalho & China, 1951
  22. Leonomiris Kerzhner & Schuh, 1998
  23. Macrotyloides Van Duzee, 1916
  24. Merinocapsus Knight, 1968
  25. Mircarvalhoia Kerzhner & Schuh, 1998
  26. Montagneria Akingbohungbe, 1978
  27. Muirmiris Carvalho, 1983
  28. Myochroocoris Reuter, 1909
  29. Nesosylphas Kirkaldy, 1908
  30. Notolobus Reuter, 1908
  31. Nymannus Distant, 1904
  32. Paracoriscus Kerzhner & Schuh, 1998
  33. Paraguayna Carvalho, 1986
  34. Prodomopsis TBD
  35. Prodomus TBD
  36. Pseudobryocoris Distant, 1884
  37. Pygophorisca Carvalho & Wallerstein, 1978
  38. Rayeria TBD
  39. Rewafulvia Carvalho, 1972
  40. Rhynacloa Reuter
  41. Rondonisca Carvalho & Costa, 1994
  42. Rondonoides Carvalho & Costa, 1994
  43. Rondonotylus Carvalho & Costa, 1994
  44. Spanogonicus Berg
  45. Sthenaridia TBD
  46. Zoilus Distant, 1884

References

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  1. ^ Henry, T. J. and A. G. Wheeler, Jr., 1988A. Family Miridae Hahn, 1833 (= Capsidae Burmeister, 1835). The plant bugs, pp. 251--507. In: Henry, T. J. and R. C. Froeschner (eds.), Catalog of the Heteroptera, or True Bugs of Canada and the Continental United States. E. J. Brill, Leiden.
  2. ^ Richards, O. W.; Davies, R.G. (1977). Imms' General Textbook of Entomology: Volume 1: Structure, Physiology and Development Volume 2: Classification and Biology. Berlin: Springer. ISBN 0-412-61390-5.
  3. ^ McGregor, Robert R.; Gillespie, David R.; Quiring, Donald M.J.; Foisy, Mitch R.J. (1999). "Potential Use of Dicyphus hesperus Knight (Heteroptera: Miridae) for Biological Control of Pests of Greenhouse Tomatoes". Biological Control. 16 (1): 104–110. doi:10.1006/bcon.1999.0743.
  4. ^ Junggon, Kim; Hong, Ki Min; Woon, Kee Paek; Sunghoon, Jung (2017). "Two new records of the subfamily Deraeocorinae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae) from the Korean Peninsula". Journal of Asia-Pacific Biodiversity. 10 (3): 396–398. doi:10.1016/j.japb.2017.05.001.

Further reading

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