Aradidae bear the appropriate common name, flat bugs , in reference to their (usually) extremely flattened body. With few exceptions, these often cryptic insects are of no economic importance. Common temperate genera include Aradus , Mezira , Neuroctenus , and Aneurus .
Temperate species commonly live under the bark of dead trees (again, with a few exceptions), while many tropical species are found in leaflitter or on fallen twigs or branches.
Most members of the family are thought to be mycophagous , feeding on fungi, but in truth, little is known of the feeding habits of most species, though they can be attracted to the pheromones of bark beetles . Many of the tropical taxa are apterous (lacking wings as adults). Flat bugs are distant relatives of the more familiar stink bugs .