''Emesopsis'' is a genus of tropical bugs (Heteroptera) from the family

Reduviidae The Reduviidae is a large Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan family of the suborder Heteroptera of the Order (biology), order Hemiptera (true bugs). Among the Hemiptera and together with the Nabidae almost all species are terrestrial ambush ...

. There are at least 22 described species, of which one, '' E. nubila'', also occurs in southern Europe. The representatives of this genus are mostly relatively small, and measure a few millimeters to about one centimeter. They move, as is common for the bugs of the subfamily

Emesinae The Emesinae, or thread-legged bugs, are a subfamily of the Reduviidae (i.e., assassin bugs). They are conspicuously different from the other reduviids by their very slender body form. They are stalking, predatory insects that can be collected on ...

, with their back and middle legs. The raptorial front legs serve to capture prey. With them, the prey is captured, then bitten through with the mandibles and carried away. Then it is drained, which can sometimes take half an hour. ''Emesopsis'' prey on a variety of insect groups, ranging from

beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

s, bugs,

flies Flies are insects of the Order (biology), order Diptera, the name being derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek δι- ''di-'' "two", and πτερόν ''pteron'' "wing". Insects of this order use only a single pair of wings to fly, the hindwin ...

, to

springtail Springtails (class Collembola) form the largest of the three lineages of modern Hexapoda, hexapods that are no longer considered insects. Although the three lineages are sometimes grouped together in a class called Entognatha because they have in ...

Habitat and distribution

The species of the genus ''Emesopsis'' be found both in agricultural and forest

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

s. They occur primarily in

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...

Asia (e.g.

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

) and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

(e.g. ''E. bunda'' in

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

). Only ''E. nubila'' is

pantropical A pantropical ("all tropics") distribution is one which covers tropical regions of both the Eastern and Western hemispheres. Examples of species include caecilians, modern sirenians and the plant genera ''Acacia'' and ''Bacopa''. ''Neotropical' ...

, probably a consequence of the spread of global trade.

partial species list

*'' Emesopsis aberrans'' (Distant, 1909) *'' Emesopsis aemula'' (Horvath, 1914) *'' Emesopsis albispinosa'' Ishikawa & Okajima, 2004 *'' Emesopsis amoenus'' Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1960 *'' Emesopsis bellulus'' Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1960 *'' Emesopsis bunda'' Wygodzinsky, 1956 *'' Emesopsis decoris'' Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1960 *'' Emesopsis gaius'' McAtee & Malloch, 1926 *'' Emesopsis gallienus'' McAtee & Malloch, 1926 *'' Emesopsis habros'' Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1960 *'' Emesopsis hadrian'' McAtee & Malloch, 1926 Hadrian *'' Emesopsis imbellis'' (Horvath, 1914) *'' Emesopsis infenestra'' Tatarnic, Wall & Cassis, 2011 *'' Emesopsis longipilosa'' Ishikawa & Okajima, 2004 *'' Emesopsis medusa'' (Kirkaldy, 1908) *'' Emesopsis nero'' McAtee & Malloch, 1926 *'' Emesopsis nubila'' Uhler, 1893 *'' Emesopsis obsoletus'' McAtee & Malloch, 1926 *'' Emesopsis pallidicoxa'' (Usinger, 1946) *'' Emesopsis plagiatus'' Miller, 1941 *'' Emesopsis scitulus'' Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1960 *'' Emesopsis spicatus'' McAtee & Malloch, 1926 *'' Emesopsis streiti'' Kovac & Yang, 1995

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1335636 Reduviidae Hemiptera of Asia Taxa named by Philip Reese Uhler Cimicomorpha genera