The Panorpodidae are a small family of scorpionflies. Of the two genera, Brachypanorpa occurs only in the United States, and Panorpodes occurs in East Asia, with a single species in California.[1] Unlike their sister group Panorpidae, the family generally has short jaws, amongst the shortest of all mecopterans. Brachypanorpa is thought to be phytophagous, consuming the epidermis of soft leaves, and a similar diet is suggested for Panorpodes.[2]
Genera
The family contains extant 13 species in two genera:[1]
Brachypanorpa Carpenter, 1931 (five species: United States)
Panorpodes MacLachlan, 1875 (eight species: Japan, Korea, California) Fossil species known from Eocene aged Baltic amber
In addition, the following fossil genus is also known: