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Benthic Macroinvertebrates in Our Waters
| Class Oligochaeta Worms |
Class Hirudinea Leeches |
Class Bivalvia Mussels |
Class Gastropoda Pouch Snail |
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PHYLUM Arthropoda
| CLASS Malacostraca | ||
| Order Decapoda (Crayfish) | Order Amphipoda | Order Isopoda |
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| CLASS Insecta | ||||||
| Order Plecoptera (Stonefly) | Order Trichoptera (Caddisfly) | Order Ephemeroptera (Mayfly) | Order Megaloptera (Alderflies) | Order Megaloptera (Dobsonfly) | ||
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| CLASS Insecta (continued) | ||||
| Order Coleoptera (Water Penny Beetle) | Order Coleoptera (Riffle Beetles) | Order Odonata (Damselfly) | Order Odonata (Dragonfly) | Order Hemiptera (True Bugs) |
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| Class Insecta (continued) | ||||
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Order Diptera |
Order Diptera |
Order Diptera |
Order Diptera |
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| Family Simuliidae (Black Fly) | Family Tipulidae (Crane Fly) |
Family Chironomidae (Midge
Fly) |
Family Athericidae (Snipe Fly) | |
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For more information, see our links on:
- common freshwater benthic macroinvertebrates
- macroinvertebrate identification
- benthic macroinvertebrates as indicators
- benthic macroinvertebrates classification
- life cycle of benthic macroinvertebrates
For more information on benthic macroinvertebrate
taxonomy at the Order and Family levels:
- Guide to Aquatic Invertebrates of the Upper Midwest - Chironomidae Research Group University of Minnesota
- Identifying Aquatic Insects - University of Michigan Dearborn Environmental Interpretive Center
- Aquatic Organisms of Colorado - Colorado Division of Wildlife
- Freshwater Benthic Ecology and Aquatic Entomology Homepage
- Chironomidae
and Water Beetles of Florida
- Freshwater
MacroInvertebrates of New Brunswick
- Kentucky Water Watch
- Aquatic Insects of Idaho - University of Idaho
- Key to Aquatic Macroinvertebrates - New York DEC
- Digital Key to Aquatic Insects of North Dakota - Valley City State University
- Freshwater Macroinvertebrates
from Streams in Western Washington and Western Oregon
- Field Guide to Freshwater Invertebrates for the Pacific Northwest
- Kentucky Insects by University of Kentucky (terrestrial and aquatic)
- A Field Guide to Common Texas Insects (terrestrial and aquatic)
- Entomology: Freshwater Food Sources of British Columbia's Game Fish
- Electronic Field Guide to Aquatic macroinvertebrates of Small Streams - University of Massachusetts Boston
- Guide to Aquatic Invertebrates (PDF) - West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection - Save Our Streams Program (6p, 500K, About PDF)
- Family-Level Key to the Stream Invertebrates of Maryland and Surrounding Areas (PDF) (98p, 1.6MB, About PDF)
Photo Credits:Ohio DNR ,
Iowa State University Entomology Department Image Gallery, Illinois Ecowatch
Network, the McKenzie
Page, the Hirudinea
page, New York Department of Environmental Conservation,
Stream Biomonitoring
Unit