I found my first Water Penny Beetle larvae Sunday in the Canterbury River, which is actually a modest stream. I seem to have found not one but two species by lifting and examining submerged rocks. Both species are visible in this image if you look closely although the main action here is the two Psephenus herricki bellied up to each other. This and all other images in this batch show the larvae submerged in shallow rainwater (not tap water) in a clear plastic deli container inside my light arena. This setup allowed me to capture a bit more detail and color in these larvae as well as showing what the gills look like when functioning in water.

I had had Psephenidae on my short list of personally uncollected New Hampshire beetle families for some time. I purchased a set of waders almost two years ago. Finally I tried out my waders and in just an hour's time or so found both psephenid species and two new (I think) elmi*d species, plus assorted non-beetle larvae. I was under the impression that Water Pennies hide on the undersides of rocks but I found some that showed up as dark, round spots on the sides of rocks as well. The first one I found may actually have been a pupa that I inadvertently mashed beyond recognition in trying to dislodge the exuvia from the bottom of a submerged rock. The second may have been the remaining exuvia after eclosure. Then I found the small, fairly translucent Ectopria that I at first presumed to be a younger Psephenus herricki. Eventually I began finding large, healthy Psephenus herricki water pennies including the two pictured above. I hope at least one is ready to pupate so I can add an adult to my personal photo collection.

This dip in the river was actually part of a two-day stay that included UV light with moth sheet, pitfall traps, a bait station, a nighttime prowl by flashlight, bark stripping, and a good deal of mushroom mashing on a sheet of plastic that I took down to the river several times to wash when it got totally icky with rotted mushrooms. The results were a great haul of beetles that I am still shooting and shooting and shooting and will likely never get around to posting except for these psephenids because they are a new family for me. (When I die there will probably be a half-million unprocessed, unposted beetle images on a giant hard drive that gets hauled off to the dump ;-)