Nabidae


The insect family Nabidae contains the damsel bugs. There are over 500 species in 20 genera. They are soft-bodied, elongate, winged terrestrial predators. Many damsel bugs catch and hold prey with their forelegs, similar to mantids. They are considered helpful species in agriculture because of their predation on many types of crop pests.
Damsel bugs of the genus Nabis are the most common. They and other genera are most numerous in fields of legumes such as alfalfa, but they can be found in many other crops and in non-cultivated areas. They are yellow to tan in color and have large, bulbous eyes and stiltlike legs. They are generalist predators, catching almost any insect smaller than themselves, and cannibalizing each other when no other food is available. Several species have bitten humans. Members of the subfamily Prostemmatinae reproduce by traumatic insemination.

Genera

These 23 genera belong to the family Nabidae:Alloeorhynchus Fieber, 1860 i c g bAlloeorrhynchus c gAnaptus Kerzhner, 1968 i c gArachnocoris Scott, 1881 gArbela Stål, 1865 gCarthasis Champion, 1900 i c g bGorpis Stål, 1859 gHimacerus Wolff, 1811 i c g bHoplistoscelis Reuter, 1890 i c g bKaranabis Bekker-Migdisova, 1963 gLasiomerus Reuter, 1890 i c g bMetatropiphorus Reuter, 1872 i c g bNabicula Kirby, 1837 i c gNabis Latreille, 1802 i c g bOmanonabis Asquith and Lattin, 1991 i c gPagasa Stål, 1862 i c g bPhorticus Stål, 1860 i c g bPraecarthasis Kerzhner, 1986 gProstemma Laporte, 1832 gReduviolus Kirby, 1837 gRhamphocoris Kirkaldy, 1901 gStaliaStenonabis Reuter, 1890 g
Data sources: i = ITIS, c = Catalogue of Life, g = GBIF, b = Bugguide.net

Evolutionary history

Several fossil genera have been attributed to the family, including Karanabis from the Upper Jurassic Karabastau Formation of Kazakhstan, but it has subsequently been assigned to other families. The earliest definitive record of the family is Cretanazgul from the Cenomanian aged Burmese amber of Myanmar, belonging to the subfamily Prostemmatinae.