MAYFLY DIVERSITY

A Page Dedicated to Systematics of the Insect Order Ephemeroptera

Up-to-date scientific information about mayfly systematics can be found at several places on the World Wide Web, including this site. For general information, please refer to my Frequently Asked Questions page.

For information about the current nomenclature used for North and Central American mayflies, visit Mayfly Central. This is the homepage for the Aquatic Entomology Laboratory at Purdue University, where I did my graduate studies with W. P. McCafferty. Dr. McCafferty and his students have accumulated an amazing collection of historic literature and specimens for Ephemeroptera research, one of the best in the world.

Ephemeroptera Galactica is the homepage for the mayfly group at Florida A&M University. They also have one of the best global collections of mayfly specimens and literature. Their website hosts an impressive library of downloadable scientific papers, as well as catalogs of species for many collections, geographic regions and taxonomic groups.

The Museum of Zoology in Lausanne, Switzerland, has an active group of mayfly researchers, with broad, international interests.

Arne Haybach maintains Ephemeroptera Germanica, a website about the mayflies of Germany and more.

Nikita Kluge’s webpage. This contains lots of information about global Ephemeroptera diversity.


OTHER LINKS

Currently, research articles about mayflies are published in a variety journals, many of which have a presence online. I check several scientific journals frequently to stay up-to-date on the North American fauna and select other faunae. Advanced Google Scholar is a powerful academic research tool.

Before doing fieldwork in the USA, I check this webpage, maintained by the US Geological Survey.

Troutnut.com is a fly-fishing website, with lots of entomology content, including message boards and many excellent images.

MY RESEARCH INTERESTS

A complete list of my publications is listed on this page. Areas of continuing research include the following.

Ephemerellinae (Ephemerellidae) of the World

This group of mayflies was very recently the subject of a global revision of genera. Its species are commonly utilized worldwide as indicators of environmental health and are often the subjects of ecological and physiological studies. Whenever practical, the classification of mayflies should reflect their phylogeny. In this way, a name is more than just a name. If enough background information exists and a name is properly given, a species's very name can help predict those qualties of the species that we do not yet know. Recent phylogenetic hypotheses will provide a basis for even more utilization of this group in studies that aid our understanding of life in aquatic systems and beyond. Currently, I am collaborating with David Buchwalter to see whether the evolutionary relatedness of ephemerellid species from the Great Smoky Mountains can be used as a predictor of their physiological performance in response to trace metal pollution. The physiological systems under study include ion regulation – fluxes of the elements calcium, zinc and cadmium - and antioxidant physiology.

Synthesis of North American Mayflies

Mayflies are thought to be the oldest extant group of winged insects. What stories they must have to tell! Little by little, we are piecing together their part of North America's natural history. To get the full picture, we will need to answer several questions. Which species are here? What do we call them? Where do they live? How do they function? How do they interact? Gathering information about species' geographic distributions, biologies and morphologies (from external body structure to DNA sequence) will help answer these basic questions. Any further science dealing with mayflies can be only as good as its foundations. DNA barcoding shows some early promise for helping to unravel secrets of the Nearctic fauna. These small segments of DNA can help identify species. See this recent article from The Mayfly Newsletter. Particular areas of interest are Churchill, Manitoba; New York State (in collaboration with Luke Myers); and Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Afrotropical and Oriental Mayflies

The Oriental and Afrotropical Regions are in great need of biodiversity research. Recent strides have been made towards improving the basic knowledge of the mayfly faunae. Currently, an emphasis is being placed on the mayflies of Thailand in collaboration with Bob Sites.

Last Update: 14 Sept 2009

Luke M. Jacobus
Department of Biology
Indiana University
1001 E. Third Street
Jordan Hall, Box A155
Bloomington, Indiana 47405
USA

E-mail: To find my current email address, search for "Jacobus" in the directory located here. 

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