Furcatergalia

Distinguished from other Ephemeroptera suborders by the presence of fringed gills. Members exhibit diverse body plans: Leptophlebiidae have forked gills and slender bodies; burrowing mayflies (Ephemeroidea, Behningiidae) possess fossorial adaptations including flattened bodies and spiny forelegs; Pannota (Caenidae, Neoephemeridae, Ephemerelloidea) generally have reduced or modified gill structures adapted to clinging in fast currents.

Freshwater lotic and lentic environments globally. Specific habitat preferences vary by family: burrowing mayflies inhabit sandy or muddy substrates of rivers and lakes; Leptophlebiidae occupy diverse running waters; Caenidae and Neoephemeridae frequent streams and rivers, often in depositional areas.

Cosmopolitan distribution across all continents except Antarctica. Individual families show distinct patterns: Neoephemeridae are widespread in Holarctic and Oriental regions; Leptophlebiidae are particularly diverse in the Southern Hemisphere; burrowing mayflies are most diverse in tropical and temperate regions.

• CarapaceaAnother suborder of Ephemeroptera; distinguished by the presence of a carapace-like structure formed from fused gills in Carapacea, versus fringed gills in Furcatergalia.
• PisciformaEphemeroptera suborder containing Baetidae and related families; Pisciforma lack the fringed gills characteristic of Furcatergalia and typically have different wing venation patterns.

• BugGuide
• Wikipedia
• iNaturalist taxon
• NCBI Taxonomy
• The First Two Complete Mitochondrial Genomes of Neoephemeridae (Ephemeroptera): Comparative Analysis and Phylogenetic Implication for Furcatergalia.