Lacewing Identification Guide

Key Visual Features

Lacewings are named for the intricate, net-like venation visible in their large, transparent wings, which is one of the clearest identifying features in the group.

• Size: Adults typically measure 1.2 to 2 centimeters in body length, with a wingspan somewhat larger.
• Body shape: Slender, elongated, and delicate, with a soft, narrow abdomen.
• Color: Most common species are pale green or light brown, though some are more yellowish; the body often has a slightly translucent quality.
• Wings: Two pairs of large, clear, membranous wings held roof-like (tent-shaped) over the body at rest, crossed with a fine, lace-like network of veins that gives the group its name.
• Eyes: Large, prominent, often coppery or golden-colored compound eyes.
• Antennae: Long, thin, thread-like antennae, often as long as or longer than the body.
• Larvae: Very different from the adult — flattened, tapering, alligator-like grubs with large, curved, pincer-like jaws, mottled brown or gray, and sometimes covered in debris they carry as camouflage.

Where and When You'd See Them

Lacewings are found in gardens, meadows, woodlands, and agricultural areas from spring through fall, wherever soft-bodied prey insects such as aphids are abundant. Adults are primarily active at dusk and after dark, often attracted to porch lights and windows at night, while during the day they tend to rest quietly on the undersides of leaves. Larvae are found crawling on foliage in daylight, actively hunting prey.

Similar-Looking Bugs

• Antlions (adult form): Adult antlions can look superficially similar with clear, veined wings and a slender body, but antlions have shorter, clubbed antennae compared to a lacewing's long, thread-like antennae.
• Mayflies: Also have delicate, veined wings, but mayflies hold their wings upright rather than tent-like, and have two or three long tail filaments that lacewings lack.
• Caddisflies: Similarly soft-bodied with wings held tent-like over the back, but caddisfly wings are often hairy or scaled rather than clear and lace-veined, and their antennae, while long, are typically held differently at rest.
• Green lacewing larvae vs. ladybird larvae: Both are alligator-shaped predators found on the same plants, but lacewing larvae have prominent, sickle-shaped, forward-pointing jaws, while ladybird larvae have shorter mouthparts and a more spotted or ridged body pattern.

Quick ID Checklist

• Slender, pale green or light brown body, 1.2–2 cm long
• Large, clear, finely veined wings held tent-like over the back
• Long, thread-like antennae, often as long as the body
• Prominent coppery or golden eyes
• Larvae are flattened, alligator-like, with large curved pincer jaws