Family Mantispidae - Mantid Lacewings


The Mantid Lacewings are from small to medium side. They are sometimes known as Mantis Flies. Their forelegs, head and thorax look like Preying Mantid but they have the typical clear membranous wings. They can be found in bush. They are active at night. Sometimes they were attracted to house by window lights.



Adults are active predators, chasing prey with their spiny forelegs. Usually they are pink in colour but some species are bright coloured. Some mimic social wasps. Larvae are parasitise, some parasite on spider egg sacs and some on social wasp larvae.



Mantid Lacewing, Mantis Fly

Ditaxis biseriata, body length 30mm
This Mantid Lacewing has the pinkish wings each with a pink pterostigma. We found the above lacewing in our backyard.












Found this small Mantid Lacewing in Karawatha Forest on Dec 2010. It were flying and stopped on plant in front of us.


Body length 12mm

It flies away after we took a few pictures.

Reference and Link:
1. Insects of Australia, CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Melbourne University Press, 2nd Edition 1991, pp 533.
2. Insects of Australia and New Zealand - R. J. Tillyard, Angus & Robertson, Ltd, Sydney, 1926, p319.
3. Wildlife of greater Brisbane - Queensland Museum, p99.
4. Lacewings - by Charlma Phillips, Forest Health Scientist, Forest Insects, ForestrySA.
5. Ditaxis biseriata - Australian Faunal Directory, Australian Biological Resources Study.
6. A revision of the Australian Mantispidae (Insecta : Neuroptera) - KJ Lambkin 1986, Australian Journal of Zoology Supplementary Series 34(116) 1 - 142