Background We challenge the oft-repeated claim that the beetles (Coleoptera) are the most
species-rich order of animals. Instead, we assert that another order of insects, the …

Beetles occur in most terrestrial and freshwater habitats and a few occupy marine
environments. The most common life‐cycle type in beetles is holometaboly. More …

The most widely recognized hymenopterans–ants, bees, and wasps or hornets–have long
been part of art, ritual, and folklore worldwide. Both extant and extinct Hymenoptera were …

Optimal foraging theory predicts that predators are selective when faced with abundant prey,
but become less picky when prey gets sparse. Insectivorous bats in temperate regions are …

Natural history museums are unique spaces for interdisciplinary research and educational
innovation. Through extensive exhibits and public programming and by hosting rich …

The Hymenoptera constitutes one of the largest, and ecologically and economically most
important, insect orders. During the past decade, a number of hypotheses on the …

Species richness is one of the fundamental metrics of biodiversity. Estimating species
richness helps spotlight taxonomic groups that are particularly under-studied, such as the …

Insect parasitoids may be an exception to the typical biogeographic pattern of increasing
species richness at lower latitudes exhibited by most taxa. Evidence for this 'anomalous' …

Genomic‐scale datasets, sophisticated analytical techniques, and conceptual advances
have disproportionately failed to resolve species boundaries in some groups relative to …

Ichneumonoidea is one of the most diverse lineages of animals on the planet with> 48,000
described species and many more undescribed. Parasitoid wasps of this superfamily are …