| Libelloides longicornis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Libelloides longicornis. Male | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Neuroptera |
| Family: | Ascalaphidae |
| Genus: | Libelloides |
| Species: | L. longicornis |
| Binomial name | |
| Libelloides longicornis (Scopoli, 1763) | |
| Synonyms [1] | |
List
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Libelloides longicornis, common name black yellow owlfly, is an owlfly species belonging to the family Ascalaphidae, subfamily Ascalaphinae. [2]
This species is present in South Western Europe (France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland). [3] These insects mainly occur in the sunny meadows at rather high elevation.
Libelloides longicornis can reach a length of 25–30 mm (0.98–1.18 in) and a wingspan of 38–58 mm (1.5–2.3 in). The body of these large owlflies is black, quite hairy, with some yellow markings. Also the head is black, with large compound eyes. The long sturdy black antennae are clubbed.
The wings do not have scales, are partly transparent and show a network of translucent lemon yellow ribs. In the fore wings appears a small basal dark spot reaching the base of the wings. [4]
The hind wings have a characteristic squared dark area towards the apex and a dark triangular sickle-shaped spot pointing to the wing tip. [5]
The wings are usually held spread in sunny areas, as in dragonflies, but when they are at rest they fold their roof-shaped wings over their abdomen.
This species is rather similar to Libelloides coccajus , but in Libelloides longicornis the basal black area of the hind wings does not reach the anal angle.
Adults can be encountered from June through August. [5] They are diurnal predators of other small flying insects. Usually they fly between 2 meters and 3 meters high to catch their prey, preferably hunted under bright light conditions.
The mating usually takes place in the late morning or at noon, when these insects are warmed by the sun. The male grabs after a short fight the female with the pincers located at the top of the abdomen. The females then lay their white eggs on stems of herbaceous plants in closely spaced double rows. [5] Larvae resemble those of antlions, but they do not dig cavities in the ground. [6]
The ringlet is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae. It is only one of the numerous "ringlet" butterflies in the tribe Satyrini.
The burnet companion moth is a moth of the family Erebidae. It is found in most of the Palearctic realm, from Ireland in the west to Mongolia and Siberia in the east and south to the Mediterranean and North Africa.
Philaeus chrysops is a species of jumping spider (Salticidae).
Aculepeira ceropegia, the oak spider, is an orb-weaving spider species belonging to the family Araneidae.
Evarcha falcata is a species of 'jumping spiders' belonging to the family Salticidae.
Coenonympha arcania, the pearly heath, is a butterfly species belonging to the family Nymphalidae.
Calopteryx haemorrhoidalis is a species of damselfly in the family Calopterygidae known by the common names copper demoiselle and Mediterranean demoiselle.
Setina aurita is a moth of the family Erebidae. It was first described by Eugenius Johann Christoph Esper in 1787.
Libelloides coccajus, the "owly sulphur", is an owlfly species belonging to the family Ascalaphidae, subfamily Ascalaphinae.
Pseudoprumna baldensis is a monotypic species of grasshopper in the subfamily Melanoplinae and tribe Podismini.
Hedychrum nobile is a species of cuckoo wasps.
Chrysura cuprea is a species of cuckoo wasps.
Sepiana sepium, common name sepia bush-cricket, is a species of bush crickets belonging to the tribe Platycleidini and genus group Platycleis. It is the only species within the monotypic genus Sepiana.
Leptophyes laticauda is a species of bush-crickets belonging to the family Tettigoniidae.
Oberea pupillata is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by Leonard Gyllenhaal in 1817, originally under the genus Saperda.
Laphria flava, the bumblebee robberfly, yellow robberfly or yellow assassin fly, is a fly of the Asilidae family.
Gomphocerus sibiricus is a species of insect belonging to the family Acrididae subfamily Gomphocerinae.It is found across the Palearctic east to Siberia.The main distribution area is Siberia. In Central and Southern Europe it is limited to the high mountains: Pyrenees and Sierra de Guadarrama, central and southern Apennines, Alps, Carpathians, Balkan Mountains and the Caucasus.
Tetrix subulata is a species of groundhopper known as the slender ground-hopper, awl-shaped pygmy grasshopper and the slender grouse locust. It is found across the Palearctic: in North America, across much of Europe and Asia, from the British Isles east to Siberia, and to the southern parts of North Africa.
Mylabris variabilis is a species of blister beetle belonging to the Meloidae family.
Monosapyga clavicornis is a hymenopteran from the family Sapygidae. The species is common and not endangered.
