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Glite Dictionary
Tenthredinidae

Tenthredinidae

9.9
A family of insects called sawflies whose young look like caterpillars
  • noun
  • /ˌtɛnθrəˈdɪnɪˌdeɪ/
  • Specialized
: tenthredinidos
  • The larvae of Tenthredinidae are often mistaken for caterpillars due to their similar appearance.

Examples

  • The Tenthredinidae family includes many species that are important for the ecosystem.

  • Sawflies and leaf miners in the Tenthredinidae (28 species) and Diprionidae (5 species) dominated this order.

    Academic text (2010)

  • Researchers studied the Tenthredinidae to understand their role in plant health.

Surface Forms

Tenthredinidae singular
Tenthredinidaes plural
Tenthredinids plural

Morphology

Tenthredinidae = Tenthredo (opaque) = Tenthredin + idae

The -idae suffix marks a zoological family and is specialized scientific morphology unfamiliar to average learners, so the meaning is not derivable from everyday English knowledge.

Etymology

Tenthredinidae comes from the older insect name Tenthredo, and the ending -idae is the common ending used for animal family names. A helpful way to remember it is to think of a 'saw' because these insects are called sawflies and have a saw-like tool for laying eggs and caterpillar-like larvae, so Tenthredinidae is the family name for those sawflies.