Australian Science Illustrated – Issue 51 2017

scienceillustrated.com.au | 65

The great silver water beetle is one of the largest

aquatic insects. It lives in still freshwater,

particularly ponds and small lakes with lots of

aquatic plants. The beetle shares its habitat with

other large water beetle species such as the great

diving beetle. The great silver water beetle can

grow up to 5 cm long and is relatively rare. It

mostly feeds on green algae, but it also dead

insects. The male's front feet (image) are

unusually large and full of tiny suction discs. The

male needs this grip on his front feet to hold on

to the female during mating, which is necessary,

as both the male and female have very smooth

backs, which are difficult to seize in the water.

Beetle's foot

looks like

peacock feather

Enlarged:

100 TIMES

DR. IGOR SIWANOWICZ/NIKON SMALL WORLD

SHUTTERSTOCK & JANE BURTON/NATUREPL

By Lise Tønner