Gerris gibbifer is a pond skater found in a variety of mainly acidic habitats from lowlands up to about 300 metres. It occurs in shallow Sphagnum pools, stone built artificial ponds, moorland ditches and the backwaters of streams. There are two generations a year, the first maturing in July and the second in September. Overwintering adults may appear on warm January days but generally leave hibernation in March. Both short winged (brachypterous) and fully winged (macropterous) forms occur, the latter being more common. The wing covers (elytra) are similar in length in both morphs, those in brachypters being slightly shorter than those in macropters.

The map is based on records from NBN Gateway, with yellow dots showing pre 1990 records, reds dots 1990 – 2015 records and red on yellow dots overlapping records. G. gibbifer has not been recorded in Ireland

Gerris gibbifer is easily distinguished from other similar looking gerrids by the presence, in both sexes, of a small yellow tubercle on the metasternum (ventral surface of the segment bearing the hind legs), as illustrated below. Length 10 – 13 mm.