Mayflies

Ephemeroptera

Mayflies are tiny insects that love to live near water. They have delicate wings and are known for their short lives, sometimes just a day or two as adults!

Hábitat: Wetlands

Aspecto

The Mayflies has delicate, often transparent wings held upright at rest, and a slender body that ends in two or three long, thread-like tails called cerci. They typically come in subtle shades of brown, grey, or greenish hues. Their unique winged subimago stage visually sets them apart.

ReinoAnimaliaFiloArthropodaClaseInsectaOrdenEphemeropteraFamiliaEphemeridae

Mayflies

Categoría

Insectos

Rareza

Common

Peligro

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Snaps

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Datos interesantes

Adult mayflies don't eat at all; they don't even have functional mouths!

Female mayflies can lay thousands of eggs in minutes, dropping them onto water!

Mayfly nymphs are pollution detectors; their presence means the water is clean!

Some mayflies have only two tails, while others have three, aiding balance!

Habilidades especiales

Mayflies can shed their skin one last time *after* developing wings, unique in insects, to harden their final adult body.

Mayfly nymphs have special feathery gills along their abdomen, allowing them to breathe underwater for years.

Mayflies can emerge from water in massive, synchronized swarms, helping them overwhelm predators and find mates quickly.

Medidas y detalles

Envergadura: 2-50 mm
Tamaño: 2-30 mm
Esperanza de vida: 1-7 días
Velocidad de vuelo: 7 km/h
Cantidad de patas: 6

Dieta y alimentación

Young mayflies (nymphs) eat tiny plants and decaying bits, while adult mayflies do not eat at all!

Diferencias por edad: Nymphs feed on algae and decaying matter; adults do not feed and lack functional mouthparts.

Alimentos principales

algae
diatoms
detritus
plant fragments

Método de búsqueda

Foraging

Conexiones ecológicas

eats

Brown Trout

Salmo trutta

Trout actively hunt both adult and nymph mayflies.

eaten by

Barn Swallow

Hirundo rustica

Swallows expertly catch flying adult mayflies mid-air for food.

hunts

Emperor Dragonfly

Anax imperator

Dragonfly nymphs are fierce underwater predators of mayfly nymphs.

eats

European Garden Spider

Araneus diadematus

Spiders often catch adult mayflies in their intricate webs.

Rasgos

Solitario

Los animales solitarios viven solos durante la mayor parte de su vida y solo interactúan con otros para aparearse o cuidar de sus crías.

Filtrador

Los filtradores obtienen nutrientes filtrando partículas de alimentos suspendidos y pequeños organismos del agua.

Herbívoro

Este rasgo caracteriza a los organismos cuya dieta consiste total o principalmente en material vegetal.

Humedal

Este rasgo de hábitat identifica especies que se encuentran en humedales, que son áreas de tierra saturadas de agua, ya sea permanente o estacionalmente, e incluyen marismas, pantanos y ciénagas.