The Alexiidae are a small family of very small beetles comprising only one genus (Sphaerosoma) with 53 species. They occur in the Palearctic, ranging from Central Europe to North Africa and Asia Minor. The very small beetles (all species are less than 2 mm) are of globose, hirsute habitus. They feed on the fruitings of various agarics. Little is known about their biology. Before 1994, the family was called Sphaerosomatidae.