water treader
insect
Also known as: Mesoveliidae
water treader, any insect of the approximately 30 species of the family Mesoveliidae (order Heteroptera). These small, slender insects are yellowish or greenish in colour and are 5 millimetres (0.2 inch) or less in length.
- Related Topics:
- Amphibicorisae
Mesoveliids are predaceous and are usually seen on floating vegetation or on the water surface. One species, Phrynovelia papua of New Guinea, lives in leaves on the forest floor.