Spring Pygmy Firefly vs Reuterella Barklouse

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Spring Pygmy Firefly Reuterella Barklouse
Scientific Name Pleotomus pallens Reuterella helvimacula
Order Coleoptera Psocoptera
Family Lampyridae Elipsocidae
Size 5-8 mm 2.0-3.5 mm
Habitat Underground Forests
Diet Omnivores Omnivores
Regions Eastern North America Europe
Conservation Not Evaluated Not Evaluated

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.

Reuterella Barklouse

A small barklouse with distinctive pale spots on dark wings found on tree bark. It is common in mixed forests throughout Europe.

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Did You Know?

This barklouse is one of the few European psocid species that can be identified in the field by its wing pattern alone.