Advances in systematics and ecology of caddisflies (Trichoptera): Recent papers published in Aquatic Insects
Caddisflies (Trichoptera) occur in all faunal regions worldwide with the exception of Antarctica, having currently approximately 16,000 described species. Because of their broad ecological and taxonomic diversity and general intolerance to environmental stressors, they are considered among the most important of all aquatic taxa for assessing ecological disturbance and water quality impairment. Their ecological importance has emphasised the necessity of assessing their diversity as well as associating the aquatic immature stages with the adult stages so more precise taxon specific ecological tolerances can be determined. This collection of papers includes studies of caddisflies from Australia, Belgium, England, Iran, Japan, Morocco, and Japan. Four of these articles concern adult morphology, taxonomic and faunistic treatments describing 10 new species and providing new country records for previously described species. Four other papers address larval morphology, biology and ecology, or diversity patterns, which is becoming increasingly better known worldwide. The first-time descriptions of female and larval morphology of the species, treated in the papers, increase the taxonomic understanding of those taxa. The Brief Report deals with several caddisfly species using plant fragments from a non-native species for case building, which has implications not only for the insects, but the propagation of the plant. It is imperative that taxonomic, biodiversity, and ecological studies of caddisflies, as well as other aquatic insects, receive increased interest because anthropogenic disturbances, including climate change, threaten their long-term survival and place some species at risk of extinction.
Edited by
David Bowles(Ozarks Biological)
Ferdinand de Moor(Albany Museum)
Wolfram Mey(Museum für Naturkunde)