Nepa is a genus belonging to the family Nepidae, known as water scorpions. There are six species found in freshwater habitats in the Northern Hemisphere. They are oval-bodied, aquatic insects with raptorial front legs. Like other members of the Nepidae, they have a pair of nonretractable cerci-like breathing tubes on the terminal abdominal segment, a characteristic which readily distinguishes them from the Belostomatidae. Their primary staples are other insects and small aquatic vertebrates. They can inflict a painful bite when handled. Etymology 'Nepa' is a classical Latin word for a 'scorpion' or 'crab'. Species The following species are included in Nepa: Nepa anophthalma Decu et al., 1994 (see Movile Cave) Nepa apiculata Uhler, 1862 Nepa cinerea Linnaeus, 1758 - type species Nepa dollfusi Esaki, 1928 Nepa grandis Linnæus, 1758 Nepa hoffmanni Esaki, 1925 Nepa monteilsensis Nel, 1988 Nepa plana Sulzer, 1776 Nepa remyi Poisson, 1961 Nepa rubra Linnaeus, 1758 Nepa rustica Fabricius, 1775 Nepa sardiniensis Hungerford, 1928 Nepa seurati Bergevin, 1926 Among these, N. apiculata of eastern North American (Canada and United States), and N. cinerea of Europe, northern Africa and northern Asia, are widespread. The remaining have restricted ranges in Corsica, Sardinia, Romania, Morocco and northeastern Asia. One of these, N. anophthalma, is the only cave-adapted species in the family Nepidae, found in Movile Cave. Linnaeus listed a number of additional species in his description of the genus, most of which either are considered synonyms or have been moved to other genera. References External links Nepa on bugguide.net Nepidae Nepomorpha genera