Green Lacewings for ID please

[Nettle Runner]

I was going through my images of last year, in anticipation of what to watch out for this year, when I noticed that I had two seemingly different species of Green Lacewing.



This one I took to be Chrysopa carnea, as it exibited the typical golden eye



However, this one had a green eye. I have several shots of this one and all show a green eye.

Can anyone enlighten me as to the species I have here.

Thanks
Les

[Fauna]

Hi Nettle Runner

I'm not the best on these...i don't think the eye colour will have much to do with determining species here. It looks like its what you originally thought it to be, or not

This is an extract from Sussex Lacewings...


Chrysoperla carnea aggregate(Linnaeus, 1767) Plant (1997) writes:

Until as recently as this year, 1997, opinions have differed over just how many species are involved in the Chrysoperla carnea complex. Current opinion favours two – C. carnea sensu stricto and C. lucasina, both of which appear, on the very limited data available, to be widespread and common in Britain, though we have no information on these segregate species for Ireland. However, a great many specimens will be encountered that do not quite fit either of these two species and these will just have to be recorded as C. carnea group for the time being. The aggregate species affects most of the world and is extraordinarily abundant (most British green lacewings encountered will be this ‘species’) and it may simply be that we have just one species which is actively evolving into several species at the present moment of historical time.

My current key has the agg down to two species, C. lucasina, which stays green in the winter and C. carnea, which turns brown in winter. There are other ways to tell them apart but i believe these can be unreliable?

I hope i'm right here

[Nettle Runner]

Hi Chris
Many thanks for taking the time to comment, and provide such a detailed explanation of the complex. It seems to be a subject worthy of further study, noting any local changes for this species.

I have sent off for the AIDGAP key to help me with future IDs.

Regards
Les

[Africa]

The top one looks like Chysopa perla, a bluish species with lots of black marking. I don't think either of them belongs to the carnea group (the bottom one has black wing venation, which does not match C. carnea).
I know it is a late reply, but I just came across the thread. Could you let us know if you found an ID for them?