Cloeon simile is a Mayfly (Ephemeroptera) in the family Baetidae. It is closely related to Cloeon dipterum, which is by some considered to be a species complex, hiding more than one actual species.
Similar species: Mayflies
By Jivko Nakev
All rights reserved
Uploaded Oct 9, 2014. Captured Oct 9, 2014 09:26 in bulevard "Knyaginya Maria Luiza" 9-11, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria.
comments (10)
https://forum.waarneming.nl/smf/index.php?topic=324609.0
The species discussion centres on the eyes (striped vs brown), number of crossveins in the wingtip and pattern on the abdomen. From that I think you can interpret the images with the discussion, even if in Dutch ;o)
I've added a very bad old photo of mine that I believe to be Cloeon dipterum here on JD too, for comparison:
(also, when yours are moved to Cloeon simile, we would still have some photos for dipterum on JD ;o)
Same goes for the other image of the same animal of course
And I'll add a note to your images of the female as well
Anyway, it is close to dipterum and has the striped eyes too, so yours should be okay as simile :o) Posted 7 years ago
What better way to start the month of may than with a mayfly? However, despite their common name, mayflies are active during all of the warmer months of the year, not just May. They are insects belonging to the Order Ephemeroptera, and comprise over 3,000 species. Mayflies have one of the most fascinating lifecycles in nature. Their naiads (nymphs) are aquatic, living primarily in streams where they forage on algae and detritus. They may take up to two years to develop before emerging from the water as adults. During their aquatic stage, they can survive for months in anoxic conditions, an important adaptation that enables them to spend the winter in rivers that freeze and thus contain little dissolved oxygen. The presence of naiads in a stream is a bioindicator that the water is clean and unpolluted. Furthermore, the naiads are involved in bioturbation, a driving factor in biodiversity in freshwater habitats. By burrowing into sediments, they help redistribute nutrients that benefits consumers higher up in the food chain. They are very useful insects!
When the naiad stage is finally over, the adults emerge. Most live only for a day or so, mate, and then die. They don't even eat—in fact, they only have vestigial mouthparts. They may not have real mouths, but they do have double gonads. Males have two aedeagi (penises) and females have two gonopores (sexual openings). The adult's sole purpose is to pass on their genes: to mate and then die. So, they are basically just flying gonads. The males die after mating, but the females live long enough to lay their eggs on the surface of the water before succumbing to a watery grave.
Cloeon dipterum, a species with a Holarctic distribution, has some unique peculiarities among mayflies. First is their eyes. In addition to their normal set of lateral eyes, males (pictured) have an additional pair of cylindrical, "turban-shaped" eyes, which kind of makes them look like they have cupcakes balancing on their heads. These extra eyes function as superposition eyes, which may help them locate females. Cloeon dipterum has another claim to fame: they are ovoviviparous, which means that a mated female holds her eggs internally until embryonic development is complete, after which she lays them in the water and they hatch immediately. Pretty cool! {Spotted in Bulgaria by JungleDragon moderator, Jivko Nakev} #JungleDragon Posted 6 years ago