The Gelastocoridae (toad bugs) is a family of about 100 species of

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

s in the suborder

Heteroptera The Heteroptera are a group of about 40,000 species of insects in the order Hemiptera. They are sometimes called "true bugs", though that name more commonly refers to the Hemiptera as a whole. "Typical bugs" might be used as a more unequivocal al ...

. These fall into two genera, about 15 species of ''

Gelastocoris ''Gelastocoris'' is a genus of toad bugs in the family Gelastocoridae. There are more than 20 described species in ''Gelastocoris''. Species These 23 species belong to the genus ''Gelastocoris'': * '' Gelastocoris amazonensis'' Melin, 1929 * ...

'' from the

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...

and 85 of ''

Nerthra ''Nerthra'' is a genus of toad bugs in the family Gelastocoridae. There are at least 90 described species in ''Nerthra''. Species These 95 species belong to the genus ''Nerthra'': Fossil species †'' Nerthra bichelata'' Poinar and Bro ...

'' from the

Old World The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...

. They are reminiscent of

toad Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scientif ...

s both in the warty appearance and hopping movements of some species.

Biology

Gelastocoridae are riparian insects, generally found at the margins of streams and ponds, where they are predators of small insects. Gelastocoridae catch their prey by leaping on top of them and grasping them with their modified front legs.Borror DJ, Tripplehorn CA, Johnson NF (1989) An Introduction to the Study of Insects, 6th edition. Harcourt Brace College Publishers. New York. pg 213 Members of the family are found throughout the world, but their highest diversity is in the

tropics The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

. Adults lay their eggs in sand.

Nymph A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ty ...

s of many species cover themselves with a layer of sand grains. Apart from the no doubt considerable physical protection that the armour affords them, the layer of sand renders them effectively invisible on the ground unless they move at the wrong moment.

Diagnostic Characteristics

Gelastocoridae are short ( long) and stout, with large protuberant eyes and cryptic coloration. Many Gelastocoridae species can change their coloration to match their habitat. Like other

, they have

hemelytra An elytron (; ; , ) is a modified, hardened forewing of beetles (Coleoptera), though a few of the true bugs (Hemiptera) such as the family Schizopteridae are extremely similar; in true bugs, the forewings are called hemelytra (sometimes alterna ...

for their forewings and piercing-sucking

mouthparts Mouthparts may refer to: * The parts of a mouth ** Arthropod mouthparts *** Insect mouthparts {{disambig ...

. Their antennae are hidden. Hemiptera_Heteroptera_Gelastocoridae_Toad_bug_nymph_camouflaged_with_sand

Evolutionary history

The oldest record of the family is the genus '' Cratonerthra'' from the

Aptian The Aptian is an age in the geologic timescale or a stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early or Lower Cretaceous Epoch or Series and encompasses the time from 121.4 ± 1.0 Ma to 113.0 ± 1.0 Ma (million years ago), a ...

aged Crato Formation of Brazil. Fossils assignable to both extant genera are known from the

Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous Series. An age is a unit of geochronology; it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in the s ...

aged Burmese amber of

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

References

Heteroptera families Nepomorpha {{Nepomorpha-stub