I. Subfamily Aphelopinae R. Perkins, 1912

Dryininae Kieffer in Kieffer & Marshall 1905: 215, partim.

Anteoninae Kieffer in Kieffer & Marshall 1906: 510, partim.

Aphelopinae R. Perkins 1912: 7; Richards 1939: 278; Muesebeck & Walkley 1951: 1042; J. Perkins 1976: 11; Krombein 1979: 1250; Olmi 1984: 43; 1993a: 187; 1994b: 35; 1999: 79; He & Xu 2002: 46; Xu et al. 2013: 12; Olmi & Virla 2014: 10; Olmi & Xu 2015: 10; Olmi et al. 2016: 49.

Aphelopini Kieffer 1914b: 214.

Biaphelopinae Olmi 1984: 94 (synonymized by Olmi 1996b); 1993a: 188.

Type genus. Aphelopus Dalman, 1823, by monotypy at time of the description of Aphelopinae by R. Perkins (1912).

Diagnosis. ♀: fully winged (Figs 15A, D, 19); head hypognathous; occipital carina complete; ocelli present; frons and partly clypeus without strong median raised carina; clypeus normally large, about as wide as, or smaller or slightly wider than eyes; antenna without ADOs; palpal formula 5/2, 5/3, 6/2 or 6/3; forewing usually with costal cell enclosed by pigmented veins (Figs 15A, D, 18D), rarely also R cell enclosed by pigmented veins (Figs 18A, B); forewing with 2r-rs&Rs vein and pterostigma (Figs 15A, D, 18D); course of forewing veins not marked by dark stripes (Figs 15A, D, 18D); hind wing (Figs 15A, D, 19) hyaline, with costal vein, without dark medial longitudinal stripe; protarsus not chelate (Figs 15A, D, 18A, B); tibial spurs 1/1/2. ♂: fully winged (Figs 11C, 15B, 19); occipital carina complete; palpal formula 5/2, 5/3, 6/2 or 6/3; forewing usually with costal cell enclosed by pigmented veins (Figs 11C, 15B, 18D), rarely also R cell enclosed by pigmented veins (as in Figs 18A, B; character not recorded in the Afrotropical region); forewing with 2r-rs&Rs vein and pterostigma (Figs 11C, 15B, 18D); course of forewing veins not marked by dark stripes; hind wing (Figs 11C, 15B, 18D) hyaline, with costal vein, without dark medial longitudinal stripe; basivolsella situated completely below distivolsella apex (Figs 13A, 20A); tibial spurs 1/1/2.

Distribution. Worldwide.

Hosts. Membracidae and Typhlocybinae (Cicadellidae) (Guglielmino & Olmi 1997, 2006; Guglielmino et al. 2013).

World species. 95 species are known, nine in the Afrotropical region.

World genera. Two genera are known, both present in the Afrotropical region.

Key to genera of Aphelopinae (♀ and ♂)

1 Epistomal suture not touching antennal toruli (A); forewing with 2r-rs&Rs vein long and regularly curved (B)................................................................................................ Aphelopus Dalman - Epistomal suture touching antennal toruli (a); forewing with 2r-rs&Rs vein straight (b), or angled between proximal and distal parts (character not present in Afrotropical species) (c)............................................ Crovettia Olmi