Capnia bifrons
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Capnia bifrons |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Capnia bifrons | ||||||||||||
| ( Newman , 1839) |
Capnia bifrons is aspecies of stonefly .
Characteristics of the larvae
The body becomes up to 9 millimeters long and is narrow, elongated and has strong bristles. It is straw yellow to light brown in color. Brown spots are sometimes found on the head and sides of the abdomen . The wing sheaths are parallel to the body. In male larvae they are greatly shortened. (Male adults always have short wings.) In the abdominal segments 1 to 9, tergites and sternites are separated. The first tarsal link is only slightly shorter than the third. The second tarsal link is very short.
Way of life
The larvae of the species occur in brooks (only exceptionally in rivers) in the flat and mountainous regions , the main focus of occurrence is the upper stream ( Epirhithral ). They feed on algae and detritus , preferably on leaves of deciduous trees that have fallen into the water (fallen leaves). It lives on gravel and stones, exceptionally also on sand, whereby it prefers areas with weak currents. It prefers warm water in summer and is therefore absent in the higher mountains. Larval development and growth mainly take place in the winter half-year. It is insensitive to water acidification through sulfur dioxide emissions. Its saprobic index according to the saprobic system is 1.4, so it belongs to the community of water quality class I (unpolluted), but it tolerates a low level of organic pollution. The generation period is one year. The species is ovoviviparous with the dormant stage (diapause) of the larvae in midsummer; During this resting phase, it can endure the drying out of the water, which means that it can also live in small, summer-dry streams. The adults hatch in spring.
Occurrence
The distribution area includes Central and Northern Europe.
supporting documents
- Herbert W. Ludwig: Animals and plants of our waters . BLV Verlagsgesellschaft, Munich 2003, ISBN 3-405-16487-7 .
- Graf, W., Lorenz, AW, Tierno de Figueroa, JM, Lücke, S., López-Rodríguez, MJ, Murphy, J. & Schmidt-Kloiber, A. (2007): Plecoptera Indicator Database. Euro-limpacs project, Workpackage 7. www.freshwaterecology.info, version 5.0 (accessed January 5, 2012).