Water scorpion - Nepa cinerea
Description
The water scorpion is a large, brown, leaf shaped predacious water bug. The long tail acts as a breathing tube to penetrate the water surface, exactly like a snorkel.
Identification difficulty

Habitat
Clean well-vegetated ponds and other still or gently flowing water.
Life History
Feeds on Insects, tadpoles and small fish. It conceals itself in weed and grabs passing prey with its pincer-like front legs. The female lays eggs in the stems of plants under water.
UK Status
Widely distributed in Britain, but commoner in the south.
VC55 Status
Fairly frequent in Leicestershire and Rutland.
Leicestershire & Rutland Map
Enter a town or village to see local records
MAP KEY:
Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2020+ | 2015-2019 | pre-2015