Mountain Stone Bristletail vs Mountain Lace Bug

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Mountain Stone Bristletail Mountain Lace Bug
Scientific Name Machilis germanica Derephysia foliacea
Order Archaeognatha Hemiptera
Family Machilidae Tingidae
Size 8-12 mm 2-4 mm body length
Habitat Mountains Mountains
Diet Detritivores Sap Feeders
Regions Central Europe Europe, Mediterranean mountains
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Mountain Stone Bristletail

A scaled, humped bristletail found on rock faces and stone walls in European mountains. It has large touching compound eyes, long antennae, and three caudal filaments.

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Did You Know?

Bristletails have an indirect mating system where males deposit sperm droplets on silk threads for females to pick up.

Mountain Lace Bug

A tiny bug with lace-like wing patterns found on alpine herbs. Its transparent, sculptured wings are remarkably ornate under magnification.

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Did You Know?

Its wings have an intricate net-like structure that looks like fine lacework.