Cocoon identified

MOSSEL BAY NEWS - A flattish, round cocoon was spotted in a garden in Dana Bay in Mossel Bay.

Mossel Bay Advertiser enquired to entomologists, asking which insect had spun the cocoon.

Thank you to Rhodes University's Martin Villet (professor and deputy head: Department of Zoology and Entomology) and Steve Woodhall of ButterflyGear for your contributions.

Expert

In the end the inquiry was passed to the expert on this particular creature, Cape Town-based Simon van Noort (PhD), curator of entomology, Iziko Museums of South Africa.

Van Noort said: "It’s a green lacewing cocoon of the family, Chrysopidae."

Green lacewings are delicate insects with a wingspan of six to over 65mm, according to Wikipedia.

Bodies

The bodies are usually bright green to greenish-brown, and the compound eyes are golden in many species.

The wings are usually translucent with a slight iridescence; some have green wing veins or a cloudy brownish wing pattern, Wikipedia notes.

There are about 85 genera and 1 300 to 2 000 species in this widespread group, according to Wikipedia.

A green lacewing.