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Myrmeliontidae

A Dictionary of Zoology | 1999 | 591 words | Copyright

Myrmeliontidae (subclass Pterygota, order Neuroptera) Family of insects in which the adults resemble damselflies, but have conspicuous, clubbed antennae as long as the combined head and thorax, and are softer-bodied. Most species are large, with lightly patterned wings, and the abdomen is long and thin. The eggs are laid singly in dry soil or sand, and the larvae (ant lions) burrow into the substrate, forming a steep-sided, conical pit into which prey items fall. The larvae of some species have a very elongate prothorax, but all have large, sickle-shaped jaws for capturing their prey.

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