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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Mayflies (Ephemeroptera) » Common Burrower Mayflies (Ephemeridae) » Hexagenia
Photo#122959
Hexagenia
Copyright © 2007 cookie1234

Hexagenia
Lake County, Illinois, USA
June 24, 2007
Size: 3.5"-4"
I looked for this one the Internet, & I think it may be a yellow drake mayfly (family Hexagenia). I was surprised to see how large it was--somewhere between 3 and 4 inches tip to tip. Also read that some mayflies molt? So is his/her skin next to it, maybe? It was on the screen for a long time. A bird came along & carried away the skin (if in fact it was skin). Can anyone give me a positive ID?
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Contributed by cookie1234 on 30 June, 2007 - 6:12am
Last updated 4 July, 2007 - 10:03am

cookie1234- Your mayfly is
cookie1234-

Your mayfly is a female imago of genus Hexagenia, most likely Hexagenia limbata. The molted subimago exoskeleton in the photo is surely the one it had recently departed. Mayflies are unique in the insect world, in that they have two winged lifestages, the sexually immature subimago (often referred to as a dun) and the sexually mature imago (often referred to as a spinner).
… Roger Rohrbeck, 3 July, 2007 - 7:46pm login or register to post comments

 
Re: Roger Rohrbeck comment
Thank you so much for answering! Besides the ID, I sure do appreciate the additional info!
… cookie1234, 4 July, 2007 - 9:58am login or register to post comments

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