Trichoptera: Limnephilidae of Gunnison County, ColoradoLimnephilus tarsalis(Banks) 1920Updated 21 February 2026
TSN 116216 Good LinksOn this website:Limnephilus Introduction Other Websites: Photos, Map, Taxon Identifier Numbers - from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility Limnephilus tarsalis at GBIF Photos, Map, Museums, DNA - Barcode of Life Data System ReferencesAl Mousa,MDA; Nachappa,P; Ruiter,DE; Givens,DR and Fairchild,MP 2022 Caddisflies (Insecta: Trichoptera) of montane and alpine lakes of northern Colorado (USA). Western North American Naturalist, 82(3), pp.563-576. PDFQuote from page 570: "Other broadly distributed Nearctic limnephilids encountered frequently were Psychoglypha subborealis (Banks, 1924), Asynarchus montanus, Nemotaulius hostilis (Hagen, 1873), Anabolia bimaculata (Walker, 1852), and Homophylax flavipennis Banks, 1900, whereas others were infrequently encountered (e.g., Lenarchus fautini and Limnephilus secludens Banks, 1914) or only encountered once (e.g., Limnephilus tarsalis and Limnephilus thorus) (see Supplementary Material 1)." Balik,JA; Leitz,C; Washko,SE; Cleveland,B; Krejsa,DM; Perchik,ME; Stogsdill,A; Vlah,M; Demi,LM; Greig,HS and Shepard,ID 2022 Species-specific traits predict whole-assemblage detritus processing by pond invertebrates. Oecologia, 199(4), pp.951-963. PDF Balik,JA; Taylor,BW; Washko,SE and Wissinger,SA 2018 High interspecific variation in nutrient excretion within a guild of closely related caddisfly species. Ecosphere, 9(5) p.e02205. PDF Banks,N 1920 New Neuropteroid insects. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology. 64: 299-362. Described as Colpotaulius tarsalis.   
Heinold,B 2010 The mayflies (Ephemeroptera), stoneflies (Plecoptera), and caddisflies (Trichoptera) of the South Platte River Basin of Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming. M.S. Thesis, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 375 pages. 148 distribution maps. PDF Remarks about L.tarsalis from pages 260-261: "The type locality for this species is Ward, Colorado (Banks 1920), although it has rarely been collected in SPRB. Wissinger et al. (2003) suggested this species can complete their life cycle in ponds that dry up by early to mid-summer. Specimens were collected at elevations from 2177 m to 2813 m. Adults were present in July." Oláh,J; Andersen,T; Beshkov,S; Bilalli,A; Coppa,G and Kovács,T 2019 Lineage sorting by parameres in Limnephilinae subfamily (Trichoptera): with description of a new tribe, new genera and new species. Opuscula Zoologica (Budapest), 50, pp.3-98. PDF On page 31, Figure 94, there is an illustration of a Limnephilus tarsalis paramere. Williams,D and Williams,N 1998 Aquatic insects in an estuarine environment: densities, distribution and salinity tolerance. Quote from page 420: "In a study of fourteen tidepools along the north shore of the St Lawrence River, salinity levels again influenced the assemblages of insects found (Williams and Williams, 1976). In pools with a salinity, 2.5‰ there were caddisflies (Limnephilus tarsalis and Oecetis sp.), a dragonfly (Aeshna interrupta), together with several species of beetle, corixid and chironomid. Whereas a few L. tarsalis were found in pools with salinity as high as 19.8‰, pools above 22‰ contained only the shore fly Ephydra subopaca and the marine midges Halocladius and Cricotopus sylvestris." Wissinger,SA; Brown,WS and Jannot,JE 2003 Caddisfly life histories along permanence gradients in high altitude wetlands in Colorado (U.S.A.). Freshwater Biology 48(2). PDF "SUMMARY 1. Larvae of cased caddisflies (Limnephilidae and Phryganeidae) are among the most abundant and conspicuous invertebrates in northern wetlands. Although species replacements are often observed along permanence gradients, the underlying causal mechanisms are poorly understood. In this paper, we report on the distributional patterns of caddisflies in permanent and temporary high-altitude ponds, and how those patterns reflect differences in life history characteristics that affect desiccation tolerance (fundamental niches) versus constraints related to biotic interactions (realised niches). 2. Species (Hesperophylax occidentalis and Agrypnia deflata) that were encountered only in permanent ponds are restricted in distribution by life history (no ovarian diapause, aquatic oviposition, and/or inability to tolerate desiccation). Although the egg masses of H. occidentalis tolerate desiccation, the larvae leave the protective gelatinous matrix of the egg mass because adults oviposit in water. 3. Three species (Asynarchus nigriculus, Limnephilus externus and L. picturatus) have life history characteristics (rapid larval growth, ovarian diapause and terrestrial oviposition of desiccation-tolerant eggs) that should facilitate the use of both permanent and temporary habitats. However, A. nigriculus is rare or absent in most permanent ponds, and L. externus and L. picturatus are rare or absent in most temporary ponds. Experimental data from a previous study on the combined effects of salamander predation and interspecific interactions among caddisflies (e.g. intraguild predation) suggest that biotic interactions limit each species to a subset of potentially exploitable habitats. 4. Many wetland invertebrates exhibit species replacements along permanence gradients, but few studies have separated the relative importance of the effects of drying per se from the effects of biotic interactions. Our results emphasise the complementary roles of comparative data on life histories and experimental data on competition and predation for understanding invertebrate distributions along permanence gradients." Zuellig,RE; Heinold,BD; Kondratieff,BC and Ruiter,DE 2012 Diversity and distribution of mayflies (Ephemeroptera), stoneflies (Plecoptera), and caddisflies (Trichoptera) of the South Platte River Basin, Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming, 1873-2010 (No. 606). US Geological Survey. PDF - caution 46MB Elevation collected 7,150-9,250ft Adults were found in July during 1995. Remarks from page 91: "The type locality for this species is Ward, Colorado (Banks, 1920), although it rarely has been collected in SPRB. Wissinger and others (2003) suggested this species completes its life cycle in ponds that dry up by early to mid-summer." The elevation range is 7,150-9,250 feet and the adults emerge in July. |