Tricorythodes grallator Kluge and Naranjo, 1990

L, Carlos Naranjo, Peters, Janice G., del, Pedro López & Castillo, 2019, Ephemeroptera (Insecta) in Cuba, Insecta Mundi 2019 (736), pp. 1-52 : 18

A.31. Tricorythodes grallator Kluge and Naranjo, 1990

Figures 18, 54 .

Tricorythodes grallator Kluge and Naranjo 1990:575 (male and female imagos, nymph).

Holotype. Male imago, Province Santiago de Cuba, La Alcarraza (Guamá), 18-II-1989, N. Kluge.

This unique species of Tricorythodes is most easily recognized by its thin forefemora without any transverse bands. It was described by Kluge and Naranjo (1990) from collections throughout Cuba.

Ecology. Most species of Cuban Leptohyphidae are found between rocks or in submerged vegetation at the bottom of mountain streams. Tricorythodes grallator is the exception because it inhabits muddy or sandy bottomed streams and is usually camouflaged with a thin layer of mud. It has a wide altitudinal distribution (up to 1750 m), but it is found most frequently above 500 m where the stream water quality is usually good; however, it has also been found repeatedly in highly contaminated areas (mainly at low elevations) so we infer that it tolerates some pollution. Nymphs have been found from September to July indicating a non-seasonal life cycle. In terms of relative abundance, it is the second most common species in the family Leptohyphidae .

Geographic distribution. The nymphs are widely distributed and are found in all four geographic regions of the island ( Fig. 18).

Figures

Figures 53–57. Euthyplociidae and Leptohyphidae. 53) Mesoplocia inaccessibile. 53a) Head. 53b) Habitus. 54) Tricorythodes grallator. 54a) Habitus. 54b) Foreleg. 55) Foreleg. 55a) Tricorythodes sacculobranchis. 55b) T. cubensis. 56) Tricorythodes sierramaestrae, operculate gill cover.57) Tricorythodes sacculobranchis. 57a)Operculate gill cover. 57b) Habitus. 57c) Detail of abdominal terga 3–10 with operculate gills. Figure 56–57a after Kluge and Naranjo 1990.