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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies (Hemiptera) » True Bugs (Heteroptera) » Aquatic Bugs (Nepomorpha) » Ochteroidea » Toad Bugs (Gelastocoridae)

Family Gelastocoridae - Toad Bugs

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Works Cited

little jumoing bug - Gelastocoris oculatus

Gelastocoris oculatus? - Gelastocoris oculatus

Gelastocoridae - Gelastocoris oculatus - male - female

Gelastocoris oculatus? - Gelastocoris rotundatus

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

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

Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs)

Infraorder Nepomorpha (Aquatic Bugs)

Superfamily Ochteroidea

Family Gelastocoridae (Toad Bugs)

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

revised in (1)

Explanation of Names

Gelastocoridae Kirkaldy 1897

Numbers

8 spp. in 2 genera in our area(2) and ~130 spp. in 3 genera total(3)

Size

6-11 mm

Identification

Key to genera adapted from(4)

Fore leg with 2 claws, tarsus separated from tibia; profemora not broadly triangular; pronotum at base of head as wide as eyes ... ... Gelastocoris

Fore leg with one claw (2 in nymphs), tarsus & tibia look fused; profemora broadly triangular; pronotum at base of head wider at front than eyes ... ... Nerthra

Range

Primarily so. hemisphere(5); Nerthra has worldwide distribution, Gelastocoris is confined to the New World; in NA, one sp. occurs across the continent, others restricted to the south(4)

Habitat

Gelastocoris usually found along the edges of streams/ponds/lakes; Nerthra often far from water(4)

Food

Small arthropods

Works Cited

1.	A taxonomic revision of the family Gelastocoridae (Hemiptera) Todd E.L. 1955. U. Kans. Sci. Bull. 37: 277‒475.

2.	American Insects: A Handbook of the Insects of America North of Mexico Ross H. Arnett. 2000. CRC Press.

3.	BioLib.cz

4.	Identification manual for the aquatic and semi-aquatic Heteroptera of Florida Epler J.H. 2006. FL Dept. Env. Prot., Tallahassee, FL. 186 pp.

5.	Biodiversity of the Heteroptera Henry T.J. 2009. In: Foottit R.G., Adler P.H., eds. Insect biodiversity: Science and society. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell: 223−263.

Contributed by Troy Bartlett on 16 February, 2004 - 12:32pm
Additional contributions by Stephen_WV, Boris Bueche, Aaron Schusteff, v belov
Last updated 9 October, 2023 - 2:41pm

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