Small Red Sedge

Tinodes waeneri · Order: Trichoptera · Family: Psychomyiidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Small Red Sedge
Photo: This image is created by user B. Schoenmakers at Waarneming.nl, a source of nature observations in the Netherlands., CC BY 3.0

Adult Small Red Sedge are tiny insects, only about 5 to 9 mm long, with forewings 6 to 9 mm in length. They are light reddish-brown with darker veins on the wings and are most often seen near streams, lakes and rivers from May through September across much of Europe.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Their forewings are a light reddish-brown colour marked by darker veins.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Adults measure roughly 5 to 9 mm in total length. The forewings themselves are typically 6 to 9 mm long.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

You will most often find them near these water bodies from May to September.

Source: Wikipedia

Life cycle

Adults are attracted to lights and are most frequently observed between May and September.

Source: Wikipedia

When you see it

They are active and most visible from May through September.

Source: Wikipedia

Lookalikes

Tinodes waeneri belongs to the caddisfly family Psychomyiidae and may be confused with other small caddisflies.

Source: Wikipedia

Status: native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist

More photos

Small Red Sedge photo 3
Photo: This image is created by user Tom Deroover at Waarnemingen.be, a source of nature observations in Belgium., CC BY 3.0
Small Red Sedge photo 4
Photo: Janet Graham, CC BY 2.0
Small Red Sedge photo 5
Photo: Donald Hobern from Copenhagen, Denmark, CC BY 2.0
Small Red Sedge photo 6
Photo: Donald Hobern from Copenhagen, Denmark, CC BY 2.0

Questions people ask

When are Small Red Sedge most commonly seen?

They are most commonly observed from May to September.

Source: Wikipedia

How big are they?

Adults are about 5 to 9 mm long, with forewings 6 to 9 mm in length.

Source: Wikipedia

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinodes_waeneri

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

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