Nepa hoffmanni is a small , about 3/4 in (2 cm) long, with a very short breathing tube at the tip of its abdomen. It lives in northeastern Asia, including Korea and parts of Japan, and is not found in the United States.
Appearance
- Appearance
- A flat, dark brown, oval bug with grasping, sickle-shaped front legs. The breathing tube is only about 1/10 in (2–3 mm) long.
Where it lives
- Range
- Northeastern Asia: Korea, northeastern China, the Ussuri region of Russia, and scattered spots in central and western Japan. Its US relative is Nepa apiculata of eastern North America.
- Preferred conditions
- Still or slow water at the edges of ponds and marshes; in Japan, mostly spring-fed wetlands.
Behavior
- Diet
- Grabs small animals with its front legs and sucks out their body fluids.
Life cycle
- Breeding season
- In Japan, eggs are laid in spring (April–June) in damp soil or moss at the water's edge.
- Larva
- The young molt five times and reach adulthood in summer.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
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