Backswimmer

Backswimmers are any of the species of true bugs belonging to the taxonomic family Notonectidae. They are aquatic insects able to breathe underwater without gills, and are vicious predators in the water. When these animals catch a glimpse of anything moving in the water they have the instincts to attack it. Even if this animal or in some cases, person, is much larger than they are. This has effectively earned these creatures a couple nicknames which will be explained in later sections.

Backswimmers, although spending a large majority of their time in the water, are also able to walk on land as well as fly. Their preference is to fly because of their large and clumsy hind legs which are a giant hindrance while walking on land. These insects have a quick reaction time when they see prey that they wish to attack. Their legs are used to grasp their prey and keep them secure so that they won't be able to slip away. This article will provide you with information about their Ecology (habitat, diet, etc.), Body Design, Life Cycle, and another section which is especially interesting and explains the common species of backswimmer that are found in the country of Norway.

Body Design
The Backswimmer has a boat-shaped back and legs that are in such a shape like paddles. The Backswimmer is often confused with a close relative called the Boatman, because of their similar body shape. They have three pairs of legs, the very back legs being the longest at about 1.3 cm. Their paddle-like hind legs are used to propel themselves forward like a rowboat. They also have one pair of wings. The back of the creature has a black a white pattern for camouflage against some of its predators. These black and white patterns are used to mimic the view of the light and shadows coming through the surface of the water to confuse predators and make it look like there is nothing there. The belly of the Backswimmer though is a muddy brown color which makes it look like the bottom of the pond from an above view.

They obtain air underwater from hair fringes that go just through the surface of the water, which breaks the water tension. When these hair fringes break the surface of the water it allows the Backswimmer to trap air and store it under their wings. They have the ability to use this stored air whenever they would like. Piercing, sucking mouth pieces are used by the Backswimmer for drinking the body fluids of its unsuspecting prey. Once they have located a suitable victim, the Backswimmer dives down and grabs its prey with its front legs. When they have the prey tightly gripped, they begin to use a proboscis like mouth attachment to pierce its victim and injects an enzyme that acts as a moistener to soften the insides of its prey, so that it can suck the insides out of it.

Life Cycle
The Backswimmers have three stages of metamorphosis: the egg, the nymph, and finally the adult. The only visible difference between the nymph and adult is the lack of wings of the nymphs. Besides the wings their is no real way to differentiate between the two besides the size of each. They choose to lay their eggs on the stems or leaves of plants that are submerged in water. The male Backswimmer, during the mating season, make a sort of scraping noise that often sounds like a crickets and are used to attract a female during the mating season.

Backswimmers have the ability to live on land or water. But the larger part of their lives is spent in or near the surface of the water. This allows them to be close to an easy food source. They can fly which allows them to discover a new source of food if their current habitat doesn't offer enough food. The mating season of these creatures is during the spring time. During this time they mate, lay eggs, and die shortly after this. Living for only a year, the Backswimmer moves around a lot in search for better living conditions because they can fly which helps them find these better conditions.

Ecology


The backswimmer can be found in a variety of different habitats. The most common habitats include ponds, rivers, streams, and really any source of still water. The most interesting habitat that they can be found in would be rice fields. They also fly from water source to water source as described in previous sections. Backswimmers can be found throughout all of Europe, areas East up to Eastern Siberia, and to some territories to the South that can reach as far as North Africa and India.

The eating habits of a backswimmer usually consist of tadpoles, mosquito larvae, small fish, and salamanders but any living thing that moves it will attempt to attack and eat. There are also some species of backswimmers that are even herbivores and eat algae. Others though have been known to be scavengers. The backswimmer has a tendency also to attack things that can be quite larger than they are. For instance a couple nicknames for the Backswimmer are: toe-biter and waterwasp because of their habit to bite humans on the toes for fingers.

Backswimmers in Norway
It has been discovered that there are three different species of backswimmer that presently live in Norway. The three species are: Notonecta glauca, Notonecta lutea, and Notonecta reuteri. Notonecta glauca and Notonecta lutea have been found in a large portion of southern and central Norway. Notonecta glauca is mostly found in the lowlands where there is an abundance of aquatic vegetation for hiding and the stalking of prey. Notonecta lutea are quite the opposite. Notonecta lutea prefers lake-lets that have a fairly scarce amount of aquatic vegetation. Notonecta reuteri can be found in either of the previous environments but may also be found in forest or bog ponds. Notonecta reuteri also have a large fondness of Sphagnum grass, a type of grass found in some Norwegian ponds that is found only in the Southern region of Norway.

Notonecta lutea and notonecta reuteri have basically the same life cycles and both hibernate in the egg stage. The Notonecta glauca however, hibernates in the imago stage. The three of them go through incomplete metamorphosis. The imago stage of the notonecta glauca is easy to distinguish from the notonecta lutea. The black scutellum is the part of the imago stage that makes the two so easily distinguishable. The notonecta lutea though has a whitish scutellum as well as the Notonecta reuteri.