order
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Coleoptera
“Adult Beetles”
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Coleoptera
“Larval Beetles”
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Diptera
“True Flies”
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Ephemeroptera
“Mayflies”
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Hemiptera
“True Bugs”
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Lepidoptera
“Aquatic Caterpillars, Snout Moths”
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Megaloptera
“Alderflies, Dobsonflies, and Fishflies”
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Odonata
“Dragonflies and Damselflies”
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Plecoptera
“Stoneflies”
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Trichoptera
“Caddisflies”
family
Culicidae
“Mosquitoes”
Family Overview
Culicidae
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Mosquitoes
In larval mosquitoes, the head is distinct and fully exposed; there are prominent mouth brushes on each side of the head; the thoracic segments are fused, indistinguishable from each other, and wider than the head or abdomen.
Characteristics
POLLUTION TOLERANCE
Mid-Atlantic: 6 - 8
Southeast: 9.1 - 10
0 = least tolerant, 10 = most tolerant
FEEDING HABITS
Collector / Filterer
Collector / Gatherer
Collector / Gatherer
MOVEMENT
Planktonic
Swimmer
Swimmer
Diagnostic Characters
order
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Legs Absent
family
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Fused Thoracic Segments
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Head Capsule Complete and Exposed
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Mandibles Moving Horizontally
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Slender Antennae with Short Setae
+ Expanded Character List
Order:
Wings and wing pads absent. Eye spots sometimes visible, but compound eyes absent. Segmented legs absent, but sometimes fleshy prolegs present. Sometimes with distinct head, often without head or with head drawn deeply into thorax. Body flattened, cylindrical, or maggot-like.
Family:
head is distinct and fully exposed; there are prominent mouth brushes on each side of the head; the thoracic segments are fused, indistinguishable from each other, and wider than the head or abdomen.
Dorsal
Lateral