Polystoechotes punctata

Polystoechotes punctata is a species of giant lacewing in the family Ithonidae.^[1][2][3] Found in Central America and North America,^[4] this giant lacewing was considered extirpated from eastern North America by the 1950s but was serendipitously rediscovered in Fayetteville, Arkansas,^[5] where it was found clinging to a facade at a Walmart in 2012.^[6] Although it was found in 2012, it was misidentified until 2020. ^[7]

Polystoechotes punctata
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Neuroptera
Family:	Ithonidae
Genus:	Polystoechotes
Species:	P. punctata
Binomial name
Polystoechotes punctata (Fabricius, 1793)
Synonyms[1]
Semblis punctata Fabricus, 1793 Hemerobius nebulosus Fabricus, 1798 Polystoechotes nebulosa (Fabricus, 1798) Hemerobius irroratus Say, 1824 Hemerobius vittatus Say, 1824 Polystoechotes vittata (Say, 1824) Polystoechotes strictica Burmeister, 1839 Osmylus validus Walker, 1853

Characteristics

Winged insect, grow up to two inches. ^[7]