Temporal and spatial patterns for larval populations of Sisyridae (Neuroptera) in aquatic habitats of east central Georgia, USA

Abstract

We monitored aquatic invertebrate communities in the Ogeechee River (four years) and Carolina bay wetlands (five years) in Georgia, USA. Typically rare, Sisyridae (Neuroptera) larvae were relatively common in both habitats (4–6% sample occurrence). However, different species occurred in each, Climacia areolaris (Hagen, 1861) in the river and Sisyra vicaria (Walker, 1853) in the wetlands. In the river, first instar C. areolaris larvae occurred throughout the summer, consistent with multivoltinism; first instars were also abundant in February. In the wetlands, only single annual cohorts of S. vicaria were detected. The Ogeechee River sampling occurred in the 1980s and 2010s, and late instar C. areolaris were more common in the 2010s, suggesting a response to environmental change. Digitised museum data of adult specimens corroborated most of the phenology patterns observed for larvae, as well as the recent increase in abundance for C. areolaris.