A team of international researchers has built a robotic insect that can jump on water. This robotic insect mimics all the movements of a real insect. This insect can not only jump, but could also skim along water's surface.

One of the study researchers, Kyu Jin Cho, affirmed that he was quite fascinated by the way water striders jump on water. They were quite excited to study the species so they could re-create its locomotion.

Cho said that water strider has slightly curved legs. It uses a rotational leg movement to help jump off from the water's surface. Researchers said that it took them time to understand the movement of the species, but once they were able to know the movement then they came up with a robotic prototype.

The newly created robotic insect has the ability to exert up to 16 times its own body weight on water's surface without making any splash. In order to jump off the water, the insect uses its catapult mechanism and also, uses limited thrust to propel itself off the water.

The prototype is two-thousandths of an ounce and has a 3/4-inch long body. Robert Wood, one of the study researchers, said, "The resulting robotic insect can achieve the same momentum and height that could be generated during a rapid jump on firm ground-but instead can do so on water".