Chrysopa perla

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Classis: Insecta
Cladus: Dicondylia
Subclassis: Pterygota
Cladus: Metapterygota
Infraclassis: Neoptera
Cladus: Eumetabola
Cladus: Endopterygota
Superordo: Neuropterida
Ordo: Neuroptera
Subordo: Hemerobiiformia
Superfamilia: Chrysopoidea

Familia: Chrysopidae
Subfamilia: Chrysopinae
Tribus: Chrysopini
Genus: Chrysopa
Species: Chrysopa perla
Name

Chrysopa perla (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms

Hemerobius perla Linnaeus, 1758:549 (as Hemerobius Perla)

References

Linnaeus, Carolus (1758) Systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata. Holmiae, ii+824 pp.

Vernacular names
magyar: Aranyszemű fátyolka
Chrysopa perla is an insect species belonging to the green lacewing family, Chrysopidae (subfamily Chrysopinae).

Distribution

This widespread species is present in most of Europe[2] and in temperate zones of Asia.[3][4]

Habitat

These insects prefer cool and shady areas, mainly in deciduous woods, wet forests, woodland edges, hedge rows, scrubby grassland and shrubs.[5][3]

Description

The adults reach 10–12 millimetres (0.39–0.47 in) of length, with a wingspan of 25–30 millimetres (0.98–1.18 in).[4][5] The basic coloration of the body is green. Wings are blue-green with black veins. They turn pale yellow during the winter. Several black markings are present on the head, the thorax and below the abdomen.[4] The second antennal segment is black.[3] This species is rather similar to Chrysopa dorsalis, showing an oval pale spot between the eyes, which is roundish in C. perla.[3]

Biology

Adults can be encountered from May through August.[5] They are fearsome predators, primarily feeding on aphids,[4] occasionally on flower nectar.[3]

The females usually lay eggs near aphid colonies.[4] Larvae are predators, mainly feeding on Aphididae, Coccidae species and caterpillars (Pieris brassicae, Autographa gamma).[5] The adult insects hibernate in winter.[4]

References

Catalogue of the world
Fauna europaea
Nature Spot
Insektenbox (in German)

J.K. Lindsey Commanster Archived 2018-10-09 at the Wayback Machine

Further reading
Chrysopa perla p. 417 in Hagen, K.S; Mills, N.J; Gordh, G; McMurtry, J.A (1999). "Terrestrial Arthropod Predators of Insect and Mite Pests". In Bellows, Thomas S.; Fisher, T.W. (eds.). Handbook of Biological Control. pp. 383–503. doi:10.1016/B978-012257305-7/50063-1. ISBN 978-0-12-257305-7.
Plant, Colin W. (1994). Provisional atlas of the lacewings and allied insects (Neuroptera, Megaloptera, Raphidioptera and Mecoptera) of Britain and Ireland. ISBN 978-1-870393-18-8.
Flint, H. M; Salter, S. S; Walters, S (1979). "Caryophyllene: An Attractant for the Green Lacewing". Environmental Entomology. 8 (6): 1123–1125. doi:10.1093/ee/8.6.1123.
James, David G (2003). "Field Evaluation of Herbivore-Induced Plant Volatiles as Attractants for Beneficial Insects: Methyl Salicylate and the Green Lacewing, Chrysopa nigricornis". Journal of Chemical Ecology. 29 (7): 1601–1609. doi:10.1023/A:1024270713493. PMID 12921438.
Bond, Alan B (1980). "Optimal foraging in a uniform habitat: The search mechanism of the green lacewing". Animal Behaviour. 28: 10–19. doi:10.1016/S0003-3472(80)80003-0.
Romeis, Jörg; Dutton, Anna; Bigler, Franz (2004). "Bacillus thuringiensis toxin (Cry1Ab) has no direct effect on larvae of the green lacewing Chrysoperla carnea (Stephens) (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae)". Journal of Insect Physiology. 50 (2–3): 175–183. doi:10.1016/j.jinsphys.2003.11.004. PMID 15019519.
Knowledge Encyclopedia Animal!. Dorling Kindersley. 2016-10-03. p. 45. ISBN 978-0-241-28964-8.