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Allocapnia rickeri
Midwest Snowfly
Allocapnia rickeri is a small winter stonefly in the family Capniidae, commonly known as the Midwest Snowfly. It is one of numerous small, dark stoneflies in the genus Allocapnia that emerge during cold months when few other insects are active. The species has been documented across the central and eastern United States. Like other capniids, it is associated with clean, cold streams and is an important indicator of water quality.
winter-stoneflybioindicatorcoldwaterPlecopteraCapniidaeAllocapnialoticemergencebrachypteryapterygenitalia-identificationFrison-1942Midwestsoutheastern-USclean-water-indicatorJanuary-Marchsmall-stoneflywingless-femalestream-insectshreddergathererseasonal-resourcewater-qualityaquatic-insectterrestrial-adultshort-lived-adultovipositionsubmerged-eggshigh-dissolved-oxygenlow-temperaturecentral-USeastern-USAlabamaArkansasDelawareGeorgiaIllinoishexapodhemimetabolousEuholognathaNemouroideaArctoperlariaInsectaArthropodaAnimaliaGBIFCatalogue-of-LifeiNaturalistNCBItaxonomyaccepted-species1942FrisonRickerMidwest-Snowflysnowflysmall-dark-stoneflyclean-streamsriverswell-oxygenatedlotic-habitatcold-monthswinter-activitywing-reductionfemale-apterymale-flightepiproctparaproctterminaliataxonomic-revisioncongenersdistribution-recordsobservations9-observationseukaryotemetazoanarthropodinsectstoneflywinter-emergingJanuaryFebruaryMarchcold-weathernear-freezingbelow-freezingwater-surfacesubmerged-substratesallochthonous-organic-materialstream-ecosystemsseasonal-food-resourceinsectivorous-birdspredatorsscarce-preyunpollutedno-economic-importancestream-monitoringwater-quality-indicatorhigh-quality-coldwatermicroscopic-examinationtaxonomic-keysmale-terminaliareliable-separationgenitalic-examinationoverlapping-distributionsimilar-habitatsmall-sizeunder-10-mmbody-lengthreduced-wingsabsent-wingsfully-developed-wingsspecific-identificationpublished-descriptionsillustrationssubsequent-revisionscharacteristicfamily-Capniidaecommon-nameextended-nymphal-periodone-to-two-yearsshort-liveddoes-not-feedaquatic-nymphclean-cold-streamslow-temperaturesyear-roundwinter-monthsJanuary-through-Marchfamilycentered-Midwestextends-southeasternUnited-Statesdocumentedappearsmost-reliablydistinguishedsubtle-differencesterminal-abdominal-structuresshould-be-comparedagainstpublishedsubsequentgenus-levelcharacterizedreducedabsentfemalesfully-developedmalesrequires-examinationmale-genitaliastructureparaproctsreliableseparationoverlapssimilarmanyexternallydefinitivereliesmicroscopicexaminationcomparisonkeysusedbiologicalindicatorprogramspresenceindicatescoldconditionsno-directeconomicimportanceshreddersgatherersprocessingallochthonousorganicmaterialstreamecosystemsseasonalfoodresourceinsectivorousbirdsotherwhenalternativepreyscarceserveshigh-qualityhabitatsdevelopmentaquaticnymphalstagesterrestrialadultstagenymphsdevelopstreamsextendedperiodlikelyonetwoyearsbasedrelatedspeciesadultsdo-notfeedactiveduringweatherairtemperaturesmaynearbelowfreezingwingedcapableflightwinglessshort-wingedremainwatersurfacematingoccurwinterenteringdepositeggssubmergedsubstratessmallcommonlyknownnumerousdarkemergefewinsectscentraleasternassociatedcleanimportantundermmbodylengthmembersgenuswingspossessfullydevelopedspecificidentificationlevelwithinrequiresmalegenitaliaparticularlymostreliablysubtledifferencestheseterminalabdominalstructuresshouldcompareddescriptionstaxonomicrevisionswinter-emergingmaintainlowhighdissolvedoxygenlevelsthroughoutyearUnitedStatesdistributioncenteredextendssoutheasternmonthstypicallythroughthisactivitygivesrisecommonnamedonotprovidesqualitymonitoringnodirecthabitatmorphologysizegenitalicEucyrtopogon diversipilosis
Eucyrtopogon diversipilosis is a species of robber fly (Asilidae) described by Curran in 1923. The genus Eucyrtopogon contains small to medium-sized predatory flies that can be confused with the related genus Comantella, with which they share similar habitats and seasonal patterns. Very little specific information has been published regarding the biology or ecology of this particular species.
Asilidaerobber-flypredatorDipteraNorth-AmericaEucyrtopogoninsectflyCurran-1923diversipilosisdiverse-hairstibia-spurComantellaidentificationantennal-segmentshair-colorationsmall-to-mediumpredatorysimilar-generaconfusiontaxonomyrevision-neededseasonal-activityspringfallearlylateoverwinteringadultsgroundbare-soilopen-fieldshumpbackedprofilemarch-flyBibionidaeasilidmatingwolf-spiderPardosapreyspiderBritish-ColumbiaNevadaUtahIdahoCaliforniaColoradoNew-MexicoAlbertaFront-Rangeeastern-ColoradoColorado-SpringsPortaleseastern-New-Mexicowestern-North-Americachecklistrevisionterminal-stylethird-antennal-segmentmaneMohawkthoraxlegs10-15-mmprotected-placesoverwinterbiology-unknownsuspectedobservedCanningsColeDennisLavigneKnutsonBarnesHullJamesBarrStephensNelsonBug-EricFly-Day-FridayMarch-12November-29201120132017iNaturalistGBIFCatalogue-of-Lifeacceptedexact-match1-observationsparse-datainferred-contentconservativefactualclarityusefulnesscautious-languagehas-been-observedis-known-tonullunknownnot-clearly-supporteddo-not-inferdo-not-fabricatedo-not-repeatunique-contentnon-overlappingdirect-sentencesconcrete-statementshigh-level-overviewphysical-descriptiondistinguishenvironmentconditionsgeographic-rangetimingfeeding-habitsdevelopmental-stagesnotable-actionsecosystem-roleinteraction-with-humansmeaningfulimportant-additional-contextcleardirectavoid-fluffavoid-filleravoid-repeating-taxonomyavoid-technical-jargonconcretewell-supportedpartial-but-reliablestrictly-matchJSON-schemano-extra-fieldsno-commentaryentomology-guideaccurateinformativefactual-correctnesscompletenessverbosityspeculationjustifiedvague-generalizationslike-most-insectstypically-feeds-on-plantsbehaviorsdietlife-cycle-detailshost-relationshipshighmediumlowtruefalse3-5-sentencesonlyhow-to-distinguishmust-include-reasononly-if-meaningfulonly-for-important-additional-contextavoid-overly-technical-jargon