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Specimen Discussion

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Earlfishman	April 11th, 2007, 9:20 pm
Posts: 17	Jason, I really enjoy your site, you've got some great photos and some really good info. I just wanted to let you know that this mayfly looks like it might actually be a Baetis sp., not a Diphetor hageni. Diphetor's antenna would be much closer together at the base and there would definitely be no gill on ab seg. 1. I can't give you a sure ID without photos of the front of the head and the mouth parts. Keep up the good work. Earl
Troutnut	April 12th, 2007, 9:53 pm
Administrator Bellevue, WA Posts: 2737	Hi Earl, Glad you like the site. I just re-traced my ID of this specimen in the keys in Merrit & Cummins, and I branch away from Baetis with this one at a couplet checking to see whether a femoral villopore is present. I can't see one on this specimen, so I followed a sequence which led to Diphetor. Perhaps my pictures aren't detailed enough with regard to that feature? If this becomes really interesting, I can pick the specimen back out of the alcohol and check for that under a microscope. For now I'm going to take your "not Diphetor" ID and reclassify this one as an unknown Baetid.
	Jason Neuswanger, Ph.D. Troutnut and salmonid ecologist
Konchu	April 13th, 2007, 7:25 am
Site Editor Indiana Posts: 505	Villipore is often difficult to see; try keying it again, if you get the chance, under the assumption that the villipore is present. What do you get?
Troutnut	April 13th, 2007, 8:04 am
Administrator Bellevue, WA Posts: 2737	In that case, Baetis. I'll move it there for now. It is frustrating that even when I take a bunch of really close-up pictures I still don't have what I need to see many of the key features used in identification. I wish I had an electron microscope!
	Jason Neuswanger, Ph.D. Troutnut and salmonid ecologist
Earlfishman	April 13th, 2007, 3:37 pm
Posts: 17	The villipore is actually nearly impossible to see without a compound scope, I really don't like that character. Keep in mind that when you get to that couplet, you are heading towards only 4 genera. Both Diphetor hageni and Fallceon quilleri have a distinct keel between the antennal bases and Diphetor has no gill on ab 1. Cloedes is seriously geographically restricted and Acerpenna has the pointy gill on seg 7 and a really thick terminal abdominal filament. Baetis sp. is a safe place to leave that bug. Earl
Troutnut	April 13th, 2007, 8:10 pm
Administrator Bellevue, WA Posts: 2737	Thanks Earl! That should really simplify some of my future ID work. Are you a professional entomologist?
	Jason Neuswanger, Ph.D. Troutnut and salmonid ecologist

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