Nepa (genus)
| Nepa | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nepa cinerea | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Infraorder: | Nepomorpha |
| Family: | Nepidae |
| Genus: | Nepa Linnaeus, 1758[1] |
Nepa is a genus belonging to the family Nepidae, known as water scorpions.
They are oval-bodied aquatic insects with raptorial front legs. Like other members of Nepidae they have a pair of non-retractable cerci-like breathing tubes on the terminal abdominal segment, a character which readily distinguishes them from Belostomatidae. Their primary staple are other insects and small aquatic vertebrates. They can inflict a painful bite when handled.[2]
Etymology
'Nepa' is a classical Latin word for a 'scorpion' or 'crab'.[3]
Species
A partial list of species includes:[4]
- Nepa apiculata Uhler, 1862
- Nepa cinerea Linnaeus, 1758
N. apiculata is the only species found in United States and is widely distributed,[2] while N. cinerea is found in Europe.
Linnaeus lists a number of species in his initial description of the genus, many of which, if not all, have been moved to other genera.
References
- ↑ Carl von Linné (1757). Systema naturae (10 ed.). p. 440.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Donald Borror; Richard White (1970). A field guide to the insects of America north of Mexico. Houghton Mifflin. p. 114. ISBN 978-0-395-07436-7.
- ↑ 'Nepa' on latin-dictionary.net
- ↑ 'Nepa' on ITIS.gov