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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies (Hemiptera) » True Bugs (Heteroptera) » Water Measurers (Hydrometridae)

Family Hydrometridae - Water Measurers

Classification · Other Common Names · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Life Cycle · See Also · Internet References

Marsh Treader along slow stream - Hydrometra

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies)

Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs)

Family Hydrometridae (Water Measurers)

HYDROMETRIDAE: from the Greek "hydor" (water) + "metron" (measure); refers to the slow and deliberate movement of these insects, which appear to "measure the water" as they walk across its surface

Numbers

9 species in 1 genus (Hydrometra) in North America listed at nearctica.com

119 species in 7 genera in the world

Size

adult body length 7-12 mm in North American species

body length of worldwide species ranges from 3 to 22 mm

Identification

Adult: body and head slender, gray or brownish; head longer than thorax; legs long, thread-like; resembles small walkingstick (Phasmatodea); eyes bulging, located about halfway along head; antennae 4-segmented, slightly longer than head, inserted near front of head; wings usually absent, sometimes well-developed

Range

mostly eastern North America; range of some species extends to the west

also represented on every continent except Antarctica; numbers and species diversity greatest in the tropics

Habitat

on vegetation along edges of ponds, marshes, and pools of slow-moving streams; able to walk on water without breaking surface

Food

nymphs and adults feed on slow-moving, dying, or dead aquatic insects and crustaceans; typical prey includes midges, mosquito larvae, bloodworms, waterfleas, springtails

Life Cycle

eggs are laid either on vertical surfaces of plant stems or on ground several centimetres above water level

See Also

waterscorpions (Nepidae) in the genus Ranatra are larger (more than 18 mm), have a long abdominal breathing tube, and are usually seen under the water surface or on aquatic vegetation - not walking on the water surface

walkingsticks (Phasmatodea) are larger and live on land in forested areas

thread-legged bugs (Emesinae) live on land and have relatively short heads

stilt bugs (Berytidae) live on land and have short heads with clubbed antennae

Internet References

pinned adult image of Hydrometra martini (Insects of Cedar Creek, U. of Minnesota)

live adult image of Hydrometra species, plus description and habitat (U. of Michigan)

adult images of Hydrometra species, plus description and habitat (Valley City State U., North Dakota)

live adult image of Hydrometra stagnorum from Slovenia by Andrei Gogala, plus common name references (Tree of Life, tolweb.org)

description plus common name references and illustrations of Eurasian species Hydrometra stagnorum (L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz, British Insects, delta-intkey.com)

detailed overview and references (Australian Dept. of Environment and Heritage)

Contributed by Troy Bartlett on 16 February, 2004 - 12:32pm
Additional contributions by Tony D, Robin McLeod
Last updated 31 October, 2006 - 2:21am

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