COMMON NAME

Green lacewing

Order

Suborder

Family

Genus

Species

Alias

Neuroptera

Crysopidae

Golden eye lacewing

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Description

The family name Crysopidae means “golden eye”, hence its alternative name.There are several species referred to as green lacewings. Larger than the brown lacewing, it is bright green and has the characteristic delicate, lace-like wings that fold along its body. The larvae are a light colour, long and crocodile like, and will camouflage themselves, usually with the remains of their prey. They are extremely fast and agile (hence my blurry photos). They are about 1 mm at the time of hatching and will grow to 8 mm.

Adult size: 15-20mm

Out and about

Adults are around in spring, with eggs being laid late spring, through summer. Many species prefer tropical regions, but they are quite common in other parts of Nth America and in Europe. In Australia they are the most common lacewing about and are found over most of the continent. The species Mallada traviata is found along the northeast coast down to the Australian Capital Territory south of Sydney.

Reproduction and Life cycle

Their eggs are laid in groups, each on an individual stalk. It is thought that this is to stop the larvae from preying on each other rather than protection from other predators. The white eggs develop a dark band when they are close to hatching. The female lays her eggs on all sorts of surfaces. The larvae go through a number of instars before pupating. The larvae pupate in a spherical, white cocoon which may be found attached to leaves. It usually takes four to five weeks from egg to adult and a female can lay hundreds of eggs in her lifetime.

To deter

To control

Plants to repel

Plants to attract

Alyssum / Angelica / Caraway / Carrot / Coriander / Daisy family (Coreopsis) / Dill / Fennel / Heather / Oleander / Queen Anne’s lace / Red and white cosmos (Bipinnatus) / Tansy / Yellow yarrow

Predators

Why they are Beneficial

Some adults in this family feed predominately on nectar from plants but also on honeydew from aphids and will supplement their diet with mites, aphids and other small arthropods. Others are mainly predatory and some feed exclusively on nectar and pollen The larvae have impressive jaws and feed on thrips, mites, aphids, mealy bugs, moth eggs and small caterpillars. They are very active. They will camouflage themselves, usually with the remains of their prey.

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