Lebia Greenhead vs Thai Aquatic Firefly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Lebia Greenhead Thai Aquatic Firefly
Scientific Name Lebia viridis Luciola aquatilis
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Carabidae Lampyridae
Size 5-8 mm 5-8 mm
Habitat Heathland Ponds & Lakes
Diet Parasitoids Omnivores
Regions Eastern North America Southeast Asia, Thailand
Conservation Least Concern Vulnerable

Lebia Greenhead

A small, brightly colored ground beetle with a metallic green head and pronotum and reddish-brown elytra. Its larvae are parasitoids of leaf beetle pupae, an unusual life history for carabids.

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Did You Know?

Its larvae are ectoparasitoids that attach to and consume leaf beetle pupae, a lifestyle extremely rare among ground beetles and more typical of parasitic wasps.

Thai Aquatic Firefly

A small Thai firefly notable for having truly aquatic larvae with functional gills. It was one of the first fireflies confirmed to have larvae that live entirely underwater.

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Did You Know?

This species was described in 2010 and was notable for being the first firefly with confirmed fully aquatic larvae possessing tracheal gills.