Filigreed Stick Mantis vs Broad-Shouldered Water Strider

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Filigreed Stick Mantis Broad-Shouldered Water Strider
Scientific Name Toxodera fimbriata Microvelia americana
Order Mantodea Hemiptera
Family Toxoderidae Veliidae
Size 75-100 mm 1.5-2.5 mm
Habitat Forests Ponds & Lakes
Diet Omnivores Omnivores
Regions Indonesia, Malaysia North America, Central America, South America
Conservation Data Deficient Least Concern

Filigreed Stick Mantis

A stick mantis from Southeast Asia with fringed edges along its thorax and legs. The fringes break up its body outline among dead twigs and branches.

💡

Did You Know?

Its fringed body margins are more elaborate than any other species in the genus.

Broad-Shouldered Water Strider

A tiny water strider relative that walks on the surface of ponds and puddles. It is widespread across the Americas on still freshwater.

💡

Did You Know?

At barely 2 mm long, it is so small that it can walk on water trapped in a single hoofprint.