Common Antlion vs Elegant Brown Lacewing

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Common Antlion Elegant Brown Lacewing
Scientific Name Myrmeleon immaculatus Sympherobius elegans
Order Neuroptera Neuroptera
Family Myrmeleontidae Hemerobiidae
Size 30-45 mm wingspan 5-8 mm wingspan
Habitat Deserts & Drylands Orchards
Diet Predators Wood Feeders
Regions North America Europe, North Africa
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Common Antlion

A delicate lacewing-like insect whose larvae are famous pit-trap predators. Adults are nocturnal and resemble slender damselflies.

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Did You Know?

The larva flicks sand grains at prey to knock them back into its funnel-shaped pit trap.

Elegant Brown Lacewing

A tiny, delicate brown lacewing found in bark crevices of broadleaved trees. One of the smallest hemerobiid species in Europe.

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Did You Know?

At barely 5 mm wingspan, it is small enough to hunt insects living inside bark fissures.