Wings with predominantly longitudinal neuration, covered with flattened scales.
On the other hand, the reduced feelers, the numerous Malpighian tubes (40), the large complex eyes, the vestigial condition of the jaws, the excessive size of the fore-wings as compared with the hind-wings and their complex neuration with an enormous number of crossnervules are all specializations.
All the wings are of firm, glassy texture, and very complex in their neuration; a remarkable and unique feature is that a branch of the radius (the radial sector) crosses the median nervure, while, by the development of multitudinous cross-nervules, the wing-area becomes divided into an immense number of small areolets.
They may be distinguished from the Neuroptera by the elongation of the head into a beak, the small prothorax, the narrow, elongate wings with predominantly longitudinal neuration, the presence of abdominal cerci and the cruciform larva.
At the base of each wing projects a dorsal lobe - the jugumand the neuration is predominantly longitudinal, resembling so closely that of the lower Lepidoptera (q.v.) that a nearer relationship of the Trichoptera to that order than to any group of the old Linnean Neuroptera is certain.