Family VELIIDAE Brullé, 1836 ‑ small water striders, water crickets, riffle bugs
Anders, N.M.
The family includes 43 genera and about 630 species, distributed worldwide. All species are predators of small arthropods, including various stages of mosquitoes. The small or medium sized bugs live in a variety of habitats, either marginal aquatic habitats, on stagnant water surfaces covered with floating plants, on flowing water surfaces, and even in torrents (Rhagovelia spp.). Species of the genus Halovelia live in coastal marine habitats. Most species overwinter as adults. The eggs are usually deposited superficially on floating plant leaves. There are five, rarely four larval instars. Most species are wing-dimorphic.
World catalogue: Lethierry & Severin, 1896 (outdated). Palaearctic catalogue: Andsersen, 1995g. Monographs: Andersen, 1982a (general account). Faunal reviews: China ‑ Hoffmann, 1941; Chen & Andersen, 1993; France ‑ Poisson, 1957a; Great Britain ‑ Savage, 1989; Ireland - Savage, 1989; Italy ‑ Servadei, 1967; Tamanini, 1979; Japan ‑ Esaki & Miyamoto, 1955, 1959b; North Africa ‑ Poisson, 1941a; W Palaearctic ‑ Stichel, 1955‑1956. Biology: Cobben, 1968a, 1978; J.T. Polhemus & Chapman, 1979; Southwood & Leston, 1959.