Ithonidae

Ithonidae Temporal range: Early Jurassic–Recent PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Rapisma tamilanum from the Western Ghats
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Neuroptera
Clade:	Geoneuroptera
Superfamily:	Ithonoidea
Family:	Ithonidae Newman, 1838
Genera
See text
Synonyms
Polystoechotidae Rapismatidae

Ithonidae, commonly called moth lacewings and giant lacewings, is a small family of winged insects of the insect order Neuroptera. The family contains a total of ten living genera, and over a dozen extinct genera described from fossils. The modern Ithonids have a notably disjunct distribution, while the extinct genera had a more global range. The family is considered one of the most primitive living neuropteran families. The family has been expanded twice, first to include the genus Rapisma, formerly placed in the monotypic family Rapismatidae, and then in 2010 to include the genera that had been placed into the family Polystoechotidae. Both Rapismatidae and Polystoechotidae have been shown to nest into Ithonidae sensu lato. The larvae of ithonids are grub-like, subterranean and likely phytophagous (plant feeding).