Spring Pygmy Firefly vs Purple-winged Mantis

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Spring Pygmy Firefly Purple-winged Mantis
Scientific Name Pleotomus pallens Tenodera australasiae
Order Coleoptera Mantodea
Family Lampyridae Mantidae
Size 5-8 mm 70-95 mm
Habitat Underground Underground
Diet Omnivores Omnivores
Regions Eastern North America Australia, Oceania
Conservation Not Evaluated Least Concern

Spring Pygmy Firefly

A tiny, rarely seen firefly of the eastern United States with a very short adult life span. Males produce faint, sporadic greenish flashes close to the ground.

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Did You Know?

Females are wingless and larviform, and were once classified as a completely separate species from the males.

Purple-winged Mantis

A large Australian mantis with distinctive purple-tinged wings that are displayed in flight. It is one of the more conspicuous mantis species found in tropical and subtropical Australia.

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Did You Know?

When it flies, the purple wings create a startling flash of colour that may confuse bird predators.