Green Lacewing

Chrysoperla carnea is the most economically important lacewing in commercial agriculture. The pale-green delicate adult belies one of the most aggressive insect predators alive: the larva (called the 'aphid lion') consumes 200-600 aphids during its 2-3 week development. Mothers exhibit one of the most distinctive egg-laying behaviors in insects: they secrete a thin droplet of mucus, draw it up to a 5-mm thread by raising the abdomen, then deposit the egg at the top of the silk stalk. The reason: lacewing larvae are CANNIBALISTIC, and a newly-hatched larva would otherwise eat its still-egg siblings. The stalk separates them. Adults perform species-specific courtship songs by vibrating their abdomens against the leaf substrate; the vibration carries through plant tissue to nearby individuals. The species is sold globally as commercial biocontrol — gardeners and farmers buy lacewing eggs by the thousand to release in greenhouses and orchards. The genus *Chrysoperla* contains ~30 cryptic species that are visually identical but reproductively isolated by their distinct vibration songs.