Paraneoptera

Paraneoptera or Acercaria is a superorder of insects which includes lice (bark lice and true lice), thrips, and hemipterans, the true bugs. It also includes the extinct order Permopsocida, known from fossils dating from the Early Permian to the mid-Cretaceous.

All of the insects classified here exhibit various “reductions” or “simplifications” from the primitive body-plan found in typical polyneopterans. Cerci, for example, are entirely absent in all living paraneopterans (Acercaria meaning without cerci). Other “reductions” occur in wing venation, in the number of tarsal segments (no more than three), only four Malpighian tubules, and only one complex of abdominal ganglia.

The mouthparts of the Paraneoptera reflect diverse feeding habits. Basal groups are microbial surface feeders, whereas more advanced groups feed on plant or animal fluids.