Overview
The Oxycarenidae were considered until recently by most workers to be a subfamily within the Lygaeidae. We have followed the revision by Henry (1997) and elevated it to family rank.
The Oxycarenidae utilise seeds as their primary food source and are found on a wide range of plants such as strawberries, potatoes, apricots, oranges, cotton, plums and peaches. In times of drought, one species has been recorded as feeding on cattle dung.
Distribution
The Australian fauna is very small, comprising only four species in the genus
Oxycarenus
. Three of the species are widespreead across Australia. A fourth,
Oxycarenus (Oxycarenus) westraliensis
is found only the coast of South Australia and southern Western Australia.