Ocean Strider vs Mahogany Dun

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Ocean Strider Mahogany Dun
Scientific Name Halobates micans Isonychia harperi
Order Hemiptera Ephemeroptera
Family Gerridae Isonychiidae
Size 4-5 mm 13-17 mm
Habitat Beaches & Coastal Rivers & Streams
Diet Omnivores Omnivores
Regions Tropical Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans North America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Ocean Strider

A remarkable open-ocean water strider that spends its entire life on the surface of tropical seas. It is one of the very few insects adapted to a fully marine existence. It lays eggs on floating debris including feathers and seaweed.

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Did You Know?

It is one of the only insects to have colonized the open ocean and can be found thousands of kilometers from the nearest land, surviving storms and wave action.

Mahogany Dun

A large reddish-brown mayfly with impressive filter-feeding forelegs. Nymphs prefer moderate to fast riffles with clean gravel substrates.

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Did You Know?

Adults hold their forelegs forward in flight, making them easy to identify on the wing.