The insect order Neuroptera, or net-winged insects, includes the lacewings, mantisflies, antlions, and their relatives. The order consists of some 6,000 species. Neuroptera is grouped together with the Megaloptera and Raphidioptera (snakeflies) in the unranked taxon Neuropterida.
Green lacewings are insects in the large family Chrysopidae of the order Neuroptera. There are about 85 genera and 1,300–2,000 species in this widespread group. Members of the genera Chrysopa and Chrysoperla are very common in North America and Europe; they are very similar and many of their species have been moved from one genus to the other time and again, and in the nonscientific literature assignment to Chrysopa and Chrysoperla can rarely be relied upon. Since they are the most familiar neuropterans to many people, they are often simply called "lacewings". Since most of the diversity of Neuroptera are properly referred to as some sort of "lacewing", common lacewings is preferable.
Hemerobiidae is a family of Neuropteran insects commonly known as brown lacewings, comprising about 500 species in 28 genera. Most are yellow to dark brown, but some species are green. They are small; most have forewings 4–10 mm long. These insects differ from the somewhat similar Chrysopidae not only by the usual coloring but also by the wing venation: hemerobiids differ from chrysopids in having numerous long veins and forked costal cross veins. Some genera are widespread, but most are restricted to a single biogeographical realm. Some species have reduced wings to the degree that they are flightless. Imagines (adults) of subfamily Drepanepteryginae mimic dead leaves. Hemerobiid larvae are usually less hairy than chrysopid larvae.
The Nevrorthidae are a small family of lacewings in the order Neuroptera. There are 19 extant species in four genera, with a geographically disjunct distribution: Nevrorthus, comprising 5 species with scattered distributions around the Mediterranean; Austroneurorthus, with two species known from southeastern Australia; Nipponeurorthus, comprising 11 species known from China and Japan; and Sinoneurorthus, known from a single species described from Yunnan Province, China. They are traditionally placed in the Osmyloidea, alongside Osmylidae and the spongillaflies (Sisyridae), but some research has considered them to be the sister group to the rest of Neuroptera. The larvae have unique straight jaws that are curved at the tips, and live as unspecialised predators in the sandy bottom sediments of clear, fast flowing mountain rivers and streams. They pupate underwater on the underside of stones. The adults are likely predators or feed on honeydew and other sugar-rich fluids.
Chrysopinae is the nominate subfamily of green lacewings in the insect family Chrysopidae in the order Neuroptera. This subfamily is also the largest within the family and comprises about 60 genera.
Chrysopa is a genus of green lacewings in the neuropteran family Chrysopidae.
Chrysoperla carnea, one of the species of common green lacewing, is an insect in the Chrysopidae family. Although the adults feed on nectar, pollen and aphid honeydew, the larvae are active predators and feed on aphids and other small insects. It has been used in the biological control of insect pests on crops.
Chrysopa perla, the Pearly Green Lacewing, is an insect species belonging to the green lacewing family, Chrysopidae.
Chrysoperla lucasina is a species of neuropteran of the family Chrysopidae. They are found mainly in the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, in western Asia and northern Africa.
Semachrysa is a genus of green lacewing found from Japan to Australia along the Western part of the Pacific Ocean. 20 Semachrysa species have been described between 1914 and 2012. 15 of them - one of which was new - have been included in a recent taxonomic study:
Apertochrysa arcuata is a species of green lacewing.
Apertochrysa flavinotala is a species of green lacewing.
Apertochrysa pilinota is a species of green lacewing.
Chrysemosa is a genus of green lacewings in the family Chrysopidae. They are distinguished from related genera based on male genital structures. The small and distinctive C. jeanneli is a commonly encountered species in orchards, fields and gardens of southern Africa.
Sympherobius is a genus of brown lacewings in the family Hemerobiidae. There are at least 50 described species in Sympherobius.
Chrysopini is a tribe of green lacewings in the family Chrysopidae. There are about 32 genera and 926 described species in Chrysopini.
Leucochrysini is a tribe of green lacewings in the family Chrysopidae. There are 7 genera and 213 described species in Leucochrysini.
Apertochrysa is a genus of green lacewings in the family Chrysopidae. There are 183 described species in the genus.
Chrysoperla rufilabris, also known as the red-lipped green lacewing, is a species of green lacewing in the family Chrysopidae.
Chrysoperla plorabunda, also known as a green lacewing, is an insect belonging to the cryptic carnea complex of the genus. Species in the complex are nearly identical in morphology, with differences in subtrate-borne vibrational songs being the only identifying factor. C. plorabunda has a widespread distribution across North America, ranging from coast to coast and from northern Canada down to Mexico. Within that range, they are typically found in open habitats such as grasslands and cultivated fields, as well as on the edges of deciduous forests and within coniferous forests. Adults feed predominately on nectar and honeydew, while larvae feed on other soft-bodied arthropods.
