EPHEMEROPTERA

• Aquatic Nymphs, winged adults

• Larvae feed on aquatic plants and smaller invertabrates

• Adults feed on… nothing at all!!!

• Adults live only a matter of hours to days

• What kind of metamorphosis is this?

Ephemeroptera Nymphs (Naiads)

• Have Gills!• 3 Cerci (tails)• May live for several

years• Prey on mostly plants

and debrie, also small invertabrates

Ephemeroptera Adult

• Ephemeral???• Pair of large triangular forewings,

often with a thickened leading edge

• Usually a pair of reduced hindwings

• Tiny antennae• Large forelegs• Usually 2-3 cerci (tails)

ODONATA

• Aquatic Nymphs, Winged Adults

• Both Naiads and Adults are predacious, feeding on insects or even tiny fish and frogs

• Cannot fold wings on back• Wings move independently

Odonata

AnisopteraDragonfly

GomphidaeClubtails

AeshnidaeDarners

LibellulidaeSkimmers

ZygopteraDamselfly

LestidaeSpreadwings

CoenagrionidaeNarrow Winged

ODONATA NAIADS

• Have Posterior Gills

• Lower jaw extends to catch prey

• Tend to live on bottom of streams ponds

• Anisoptera Nymphs: Short and Wide

• Zygoptera Nymphs: Long and Narrow

DRAGONFLIES VS DAMSELFLIES

ANISOPTERA: AESHNIDAE (DARNERS)

• Clear Wings

• Large Eyes Touch

• Tend to have bright bodies: Blue, Green, and Brown

• Live near ponds and streams

ANISOPTERA: GOMPHIDAE (CLUBTAILS)

• Have separated eyes

• Large, sprawling legs

• Club like widening at end of abdomen

ANISOPTERA: LIBELLULIDAE (SKIMMERS)

• Bright colored bodies

• Bodies are shorter than wingspan

• Wings often have bands or spots

ZYGOPTERA: COENAGRIONIDAE (NARROW-WINGED)

• Most common Damselflies

• Wings held upright at rest

• Bright colored bodies

• Clear wings

• Naiads have leafy gills

ZYGOPTERA: LESTIDAE

• Wings diverge at rest

• Wings clear, bodies colored

• Naiads have stalk like gills with rounded ends

DICHOTOMOUS KEYS

• Based on dichotomies, you must choose one of two options

• By repeating this step, you can narrow down to more and more specific classifications

• Answers often involve whether a diagnostic trait is present

• Example: Does this insect have wings?

Does it have cerci (tails?)

ODONATA

• Does it have a stout body and hold its wings flat at rest?

• Is Body Longer than Wingspan?

• Do its eyes touch at top of head?

Odonata

AnisopteraDragonfly

GomphidaeClubtails

AeshnidaeDarners

LibellulidaeSkimmers

ZygopteraDamselfly

LestidaeSpreadwings

CoenagrionidaeNarrow Winged

HOW THE KEY WOULD LOOK

1. It has wings 4

It doesn’t have wings 2

2. It has six legs 3

It doesn’t have six legs it’s not an insect

3. Its ancestors have wings 4

It never had wings apterygota

4. It only lives for a day ephemeroptera

It lives for many days 5

5. It has bulging eyes Zygoptera

Its eyes do not bulge Anisoptera