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Presented at the NABS Annual meeting, Vancouver, British Columbia, 2004
in Community structure 1
Using pupal exuviae to characterize the Chironomidae fauna of the Kenai River, Alaska
D.C. Wartinbee. Department of Biology, University of Alaska, Anchorage, Kenai Peninsula College, Soldotna, Alaska 99669
The Chironomidae of Alaska are not well known although they are a major taxonomic and biomass component of virtually all streams in Alaska. The small size of the larvae makes them difficult and time consuming to collect from benthic samples. Then, additional time is needed for slide mounting and identification. Cast exuviae on the other hand are very easy to collect from the surface of streams, lakes, or ponds. Further, exuviae are about as large as the organisms get and are relatively easy to sort and identify using a dissection microscope. This study was undertaken to develop a species list and emergence phenology for the Kenai River Chironomidae. Collections of exuviae were made about every two weeks during the emergence periods of 1999 and 2001.
During two seasons of collections, 86 species of Chironomidae were identified. There were some variations among the different collection sites as well as some yearly variations. Several species emerged throughout the season while many others were only found at specific times. Using collections of exuviae, instead of larvae samples, can enable easy recognition of a large portion of the Chironomidae community and methods are available to measure production per area as well.
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