Dietary compositional study of three species of trichopteran larvae of Ceratopsyche in three environmentally diverse habitats.

Abstract

I examined the diets of larvae of three species of Hydropsychid caddisflies (Ceratopsyche) from three different habitats in the Maple River in northern Michigan. Gut tube compositional contents of C. bifida were on average 37% algae, 50% detritus, and 13% inorganic matter. Diet of C. slossonae's was calculated to be 21% algae, 68% detritus, and 12% inorganic matter. C. recurvata's diet was 22% algae, 54% detritus, and 10% inorganic composition. For each species, the predominant algae consumer were distoms, the division Bacillariophyta, in which the genus Cocconeis dominated.