Other Common Names
Green Mantidfly, Green Mantisfly (note: these names are shared among other members of its genus, including allies occurring in Mexico and will cause significant confusion if used globally)
Minute Green Mantidfly, Minute Green Mantisfly (these names may be more appropriate for global use)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Zeugomantispa minuta (
Fabricius 1775)
=Mantispa viridis Walker 1953
=Mantispa femoralis Navás 1914
=Mantispa viridata Navás 1924
=Mantispa rubicata Navás 1924
=Mantispa flavicornis Navás 1930
=Mantispilla taina Alayo 1968
=Mantispa brevicollis viridis Maes 1989
=
Zeugomantispa viridis in Hoffman 1992
(1)Explanation of Names
Zeugomantispa minuta
minuta = from the Latin minūta ('minute, small, petty, commonplace')
Identification
Green color distinctive among our mantispid fauna (although preserved specimens frequently appear pale yellow).
Note: other green members of this genus occur in the Neotropics.
Wing venation
Range
e. US: NJ-WI south to FL-TX (rare in northern part of range); Central America to Venezuela
(2)(3)(4)Season
Late spring through fall.
Food
Predatory: larvae feed on spider eggs; adult small insects.
Life Cycle
Larvae penetrate spider egg sacks and develop as
parasitoids; known hosts include members of 26 genera from 15 families
egg mass; eggs; young-larva; pupa; adult females:
Print References
Brushwein J.R., Hoffman K.M., Culin J.D. 1992.
Spider (Araneae) taxa associated with Mantispa viridis (Neuroptera: Mantispidae). The Journal of Arachnology 20: 153–156.
Brushwein J.R., Culin J.D., Hoffman K.M. 1995. Developmental and reproductive behavior of Mantispa viridis Walker (Neuroptera: Mantispidae). J. Entomol. Sci. 30:99–111
Brushwein J.R., Hoffman K.M., Culin J.D. 1995. Seasonal phenology and overwintering of Mantispa viridis Walker (Neuroptera: Mantispidae) in South Carolina. J. Entomol. Sci. 30:112–19
Hoffman K.M. 2002. Family Mantispidae. In: Penny N.D., ed.
A guide to the lacewings (Neuroptera) of Costa Rica. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 53(12): 251-275. [
Read online or
download PDF]
(1)Hoffman K.M. 1992. Systematics of the Mantispinae (Neuroptera: Mantispidae) of North, Central and South America. Ph.D. dissertation. Clemson University, Clemson, SC. xiii+501 pp.
(5)Reynoso-Velasco, D. & A. Contreras-Ramos. 2008. Mantispidae (Neuroptera) of Mexico: Distribution and key to genera. Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 101(4): 703-712 (
Full Text)
