Pleidae

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Pygmy backswimmers
Plea minutissima MHNT.jpg
Plea minutissima - MHNT
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Hemiptera
Infraorder:
Nepomorpha
(unranked):
Tripartita
Superfamily:
Pleoidea (disputed)
Family:
Pleidae

Fieber, 1817
Genera

Neoplea
Paraplea
Plea

Pleidae, the pygmy backswimmers, is a family of aquatic insects in the order Hemiptera (infraorder Nepomorpha, or "true water bugs"). There are 37 species in three genera, distributed across most of the world, except the polar regions and remote oceanic islands. [1]

Pleidae belong to the Tripartita which contains the more advanced lineages of true water bugs, and are closely related to the true backswimmers (Notonectidae), but closer still to the Helotrephidae, another family of tiny Nepomorpha, which usually swim upside-down and, like the Pleidae, have a sensory organ in the center of the clypeus. [2] Either the pygmy backswimmers are united with the Helotrephidae in the superfamily Pleoidea, or these two and the true backswimmers are placed in a single superfamily Notonectoidea. [3]

Distribution

In Europe there is a single species, Plea minutissima , widely found in that continent. [4] Plea species occur in the Old World, while Neoplea is found in the Americas. [5] Paraplea can be found in all warmer parts of Earth, including Australia, where three species occur. [6] Given their inability to fly well – if they can fly at all – it is not surprising that the Pleidae do not have as many endemic island taxa as some other Heteroptera (true bugs). [7] Only five species are known from the entire Malesian archipelago for example. [8] Neoplea apopkana has been introduced to the Hawaiian Islands in Polynesia. [5] One species, originally native to South Asia and Southeast Asia, was found in aquaria in New Zealand. [5] In 2006, Paraplea puella was found to be introduced to Guam in Micronesia. [5] Like in the preceding case, this originally American species was probably accidentally introduced with aquarium plants. [1]

Description

These tiny Hemiptera are only 2–3 mm long and usually of a light brownish color overall. [9] Their body is oval, plump, with a concave back. [9] Their compound eyes are large and the ocelli vestigial, like in other Nepomorpha. [9] Also characteristic for the infraorder are the short and weak antennae which are usually carried tucked to the head. [9] In the case of the Pleidae the antennae are shorter than the head is long and only consist of three segments. [10]

The scutellum is small and triangular. [8] The wings are reduced in some fully flightless species, but normally developed in most; due to their compact, rotund bodies and generally short wings, even those with well-developed wings fly weakly at best. [9] By and large the Pleidae may be considered an effectively flightless group when it comes to biogeography and dispersal into new habitat. [7]

The tarsi consist of two or three segments; two claws are borne on the last tarsal segment of the hindlegs. [11] Though the hindlegs are hairless and appear ill-suited for swimming compared to the stout "flippers" of the water boatmen (Corixidae) or the backswimmers (Notonectidae), the small size of the pygmy backswimmers makes for different physics and allows them to swim well regardless[ citation needed ].

Both sexes are able to stridulate. The sounds they produce apparently have an intraspecific communication function, as the animals are able to perceive and react to them. [12] Possibly they make sounds to maintain contact among the loose swarms in which the Pleidae roam their habitat [ citation needed ].

The larvae have glands between the third and fourth abdominal tergite. Development is direct, without a pupal stage[ citation needed ].

Ecology

Pygmy backswimmers inhabit lacustrine ecosystems, where they occur in loose groups. [5] An example of a pygmy backswimmer habitat is a suburban pond with abundant filamentous algae. Like many of their relatives, they are predatory, hunting other tiny invertebrates, from which they suck out the body fluids with their rostrum. [9] They can to some extent biologically control mosquito larvae[ citation needed ]. Unlike true backswimmers (Notonectidae), they are completely harmless to humans, as their rostrum is far too small to pierce skin. [9]

Their hindleg claws enable them to clamber through vegetation which apart from swimming is their main form of locomotion. Like Notonectidae, they are in an upside-down position when swimming. [9] This is ultimately because as all true water bugs, Pleidae are air-breathers without gills. [9] Similar to the true backswimmers, pygmy backswimmers carry an air reserve with them which is periodically replenished by a dash to the water's surface. [9] This air is contained in a felt-like cushion on the underside. Thus, the belly has higher buoyancy, resulting in the animal turning upside down as soon as it lets loose from the substrate. [9]

Footnotes

  1. 1 2 Zack et al. (2007)
  2. ↑ Nowińska, Agnieszka; Brożek, Jolanta (2021-12-14). "Morphology of the Antennal Sensilla of Notonectoidea and Comparison of Evolutionary Changes in Sensilla Types and Distribution in Infraorder Nepomorpha (Insecta: Heteroptera)". Insects. 12 (12): 1121. doi: 10.3390/insects12121121 . ISSN   2075-4450. PMC   8703933 . PMID   34940209.
  3. ↑ Hebsgaard et al. (2004)
  4. ↑ Havemann, Nadine; Gossner, Martin M.; Hendrich, Lars; Morinière, Jèrôme; Niedringhaus, Rolf; Schäfer, Peter; Raupach, Michael J. (2018-05-02). "From water striders to water bugs: the molecular diversity of aquatic Heteroptera (Gerromorpha, Nepomorpha) of Germany based on DNA barcodes". PeerJ. 6: e4577. doi: 10.7717/peerj.4577 . ISSN   2167-8359. PMC   5936072 . PMID   29736329.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Zack, Richard S.; Moore, Aubrey; Miller, Ross H. (2007-10-17). "First record of a pygmy backswimmer (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pleidae) from Micronesia". Zootaxa. 1617 (1): 67–68. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1617.1.4. ISSN   1175-5334.
  6. ↑ Australia, Atlas of Living. "Genus: Paraplea". bie.ala.org.au. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  7. 1 2 Gittelman, Steven H. (1974). "The Habitat Preference and Immature Stages of Neoplea striola (Hemiptera: Pleidae)". Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society. 47 (4): 491–503. ISSN   0022-8567. JSTOR   25082685.
  8. 1 2 lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/app/uploads/2017/06/52rbz079-096.pdf . Retrieved 2024-03-08.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Pleidae". cfb.unh.edu. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  10. ↑ "Family: Pleidae | Chironomidae Research Group". midge.cfans.umn.edu. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  11. ↑ "Insects of Britain and Ireland: Hemiptera families - Pleidae". www.delta-intkey.com. Retrieved 2024-03-09.
  12. ↑ thhruby@uwm.edu (2017-05-16). "Pygmy Backswimmer (Family Pleidae)". Field Station. Retrieved 2024-03-09.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hemiptera</span> Order of insects often called true bugs

Hemiptera is an order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising over 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, assassin bugs, bed bugs, and shield bugs. They range in size from 1 mm (0.04 in) to around 15 cm (6 in), and share a common arrangement of piercing-sucking mouthparts. The name "true bugs" is often limited to the suborder Heteroptera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heteroptera</span> Suborder of true bugs

The Heteroptera are a group of about 40,000 species of insects in the order Hemiptera. They are sometimes called "true bugs", though that name more commonly refers to the Hemiptera as a whole. "Typical bugs" might be used as a more unequivocal alternative, since the heteropterans are most consistently and universally termed "bugs" among the Hemiptera. "Heteroptera" is Greek for "different wings": most species have forewings with both membranous and hardened portions ; members of the primitive sub-group Enicocephalomorpha have completely membranous wings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentatomoidea</span> Superfamily of true bugs

The Pentatomoidea are a superfamily of insects in the suborder Heteroptera of the order Hemiptera. As hemipterans, they possess a common arrangement of sucking mouthparts. The roughly 7000 species under Pentatomoidea are divided into 21 families. Among these are the stink bugs and shield bugs, jewel bugs, giant shield bugs, and burrower bugs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corixidae</span> Family of true bugs

Corixidae is a family of aquatic insects in the order Hemiptera. They are found worldwide in virtually any freshwater habitat and a few species live in saline water. There are about 500 known species worldwide, in 55 genera, including the genus Sigara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Notonectidae</span> Family of true bugs

Notonectidae is a cosmopolitan family of aquatic insects in the order Hemiptera, commonly called backswimmers because they swim "upside down" (inverted). They are all predators and typically range from 0.5 to 1.5 cm (0.2–0.6 in) in length. They are similar in appearance to Corixidae, but can be separated by differences in their dorsal-ventral coloration, front legs, and predatory behavior. Their dorsum is convex, lightly colored without cross striations. Their front tarsi are not scoop-shaped and their hind legs are fringed for swimming. There are about 350 species in two subfamilies: Notonectinae with seven genera, and Anisopinae with four genera. Members in the former subfamily are often larger than those in the latter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerromorpha</span> Infraorder of true bugs

The Gerromorpha comprise an infraorder of insects in the "true bug" order Hemiptera. These "typical" bugs are commonly called semiaquatic bugs or shore-inhabiting bugs. The Ochteroidea (infraorder Nepomorpha are also found in shore habitat, while the Gerromorpha are actually most often encountered running around on the water surface, being kept from sinking by surface tension and their water-repellent legs. Well-known members of the Gerromorpha are the namesake Gerridae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nepomorpha</span> Infraorder of true bugs

Nepomorpha is an infraorder of insects in the "true bug" order (Hemiptera). They belong to the "typical" bugs of the suborder Heteroptera. Due to their aquatic habits, these animals are known as true water bugs. They occur all over the world outside the polar regions, with about 2,000 species altogether. The Nepomorpha can be distinguished from related Heteroptera by their missing or vestigial ocelli. Also, as referred to by the obsolete name Cryptocerata, their antennae are reduced, with weak muscles, and usually carried tucked against the head.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yuri Alexandrovich Popov</span>

Yuri Alexandrovich Popov was a Soviet and Russian paleoentomologist, an authority on the taxonomy and evolution of fossil true bugs (Heteroptera) and Coleorrhyncha. He described more than 20 new families and subfamilies and 300 new genera and species from the Mesozoic and Cenozoic. He also was one of the founders of the modern higher classification of true bugs: three of seven heteropteran infraorders have been established by him. He was the author of more than 170 publications, including a classic monograph on the evolution of water bugs.

<i>Notonecta undulata</i> Species of true bug

Notonecta undulata, also known by the common name grousewinged backswimmer, are from the family Notonectidae and the insect suborder Heteroptera. They are a type of hemipteran or true bug. These aquatic insects typically spend their time at the water's surface, using their abdomen and legs to cling to the underside of the surface tension. The Grousewinged backswimmer can be found in both lotic and lentic environments; however, they typically prefer small ponds and lakes where the water is slow-moving with less current. They swim upside down looking for prey. Once they stop swimming they float back up to the surface. These insects can be distinguished from water boatman or Corixidae by their segmented beak and front legs. Water boatman have highly modified front legs whereas backswimmers do not. Backswimmers are distributed across a broad range throughout North America. However, the species Notonecta undulata has only been documented and studied in southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the western United States. N. undulata differs from other backswimmers by their antennae and size. They are approximately 10–12 mm long, and their antennae are 4 segmented.

<i>Hebrus</i> (bug) Genus of true bugs

Hebrus is a genus of velvet water bugs in the family Hebridae. There are at least 160 described species in Hebrus.

Salda lugubris is a species of shore bug in the family Saldidae. It is found in Central America and North America.

Salda is a genus of shore bugs in the family Saldidae. There are about 18 described species in Salda.

Gerris incognitus is a species of water strider in the family Gerridae. It is found in North America.

<i>Buenoa</i> Genus of true bugs

Buenoa is a genus of backswimmer. It was created by George Willis Kirkaldy in 1904 to include all species of Anisops from the Western Hemisphere with a two-segmented front tarsus in males, reserving the latter genus for Eastern Hemisphere species with a one-segmented front tarsus in males. It contains 69 described species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corixini</span> Tribe of true bugs

Corixini is a tribe of water boatmen in the family Corixidae. There are about 9 genera and at least 30 described species in the genus Corixini.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Micronectidae</span> Family of true bugs

Micronectidae is a family of water boatmen often referred to as pygmy water boatmen. They were originally classified as a subfamily under Corixidae but were raised to family level by Nieser (2002).

Neoplea is a genus of pygmy backswimmers in the family Pleidae. There are at least three described species in Neoplea.

<i>Microvelia buenoi</i> Species of true bug

Microvelia buenoi is a species of smaller water strider in the family Veliidae. It is found in Europe & Northern Asia and North America.

<i>Hydrometra</i> Genus of true bugs

Hydrometra is a genus of water measurers in the family Hydrometridae. There are more than 120 described species in Hydrometra.

Meschiidae is a family of true bugs in the order Hemiptera. It comprises at least three genera and about five described species within the Meschiidae family.

References

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