According to Francis Skalikcy, Missouri Department of Conservation, the Water Strider can live for up to one year. The actual life span of the Strider is not yet clearly known.
There are about 500 different species of Water Striders. With bodies that are flat, long, brown, and generally wingless, they are most easy to identify by their second and third pairs of legs that are nearly twice the length of their bodies. Using their middle legs like oars of a boat to propel, they use their back legs in unison to steer left or right. Small water-repellent hairs grow on their underbellies in order to trap air that helps to keep them buoyant, as well as provide oxygen to breath.
Residing on top of calm waters such as ponds and slow streams, the tiny Water Strider tends to gather in small numbers. Skittish by nature, this delicate insect will flee for shelter in a flash upon sensing strong vibrations through the waters they inhabit. In spite of its buoyancy, however, the Water Strider will on occasion go underwater in times of danger, only to return to the surface once all is clear.
Using their short front legs to grab hold and eat its prey, the Water Strider's diet consists of a variety of aquatic creatures such as seed shrimp, mosquito larvae, and insects that drop onto the water. The Water Strider may be small but it's more than strong enough to push its prey into its mouth and suck out the contents. Water Striders do not bite people.
Predators of the Water Strider include animals from both below and above the water's surface. Birds often swoop down for a tasty Strider snack as well as fish preying on this tasty feast from below.