An integrated study on the biodiversity and ecology of mayflies (Insecta: Ephemeroptera) in Arunachal Pradesh, India

Marimuthu, Muthukatturaja; Kubendran, Thangavel; Vasanth, Malaisamy; Saheli, Basak; Subramanian, Kumarapuram Apadodharanan

doi:10.48311/jibs.12.03.491

An integrated study on the biodiversity and ecology of mayflies (Insecta: Ephemeroptera) in Arunachal Pradesh, India

Document Type : Full-length Research Article

Authors

Muthukatturaja Marimuthu ¹

Thangavel Kubendran ²

Malaisamy Vasanth ³

Basak Saheli ²

Kumarapuram Apadodharanan Subramanian ³

¹ Miscellaneous Insect Order Section, Zoological Survey of India, Prani Vigyan Bhawan, M- Block, New Alipore, Kolkata–700053, West Bengal, India.

² Miscellaneous Insect Order Section, Zoological Survey of India, Prani Vigyan Bhawan, 535, M- Block, New Alipore, Kolkata–700053, West Bengal, India.

³ Southern Regional Centre, Zoological Survey of India, Santhome High Road, Chennai 600 028, Tamil Nadu, India.

10.48311/jibs.12.03.491

Abstract

The Indian Eastern Himalaya (Arunachal Pradesh) remains poorly explored for the diversity and ecology of mayflies (Ephemeroptera). The present study provides a comprehensive assessment of mayfly diversity, community structure, and species-environment relationships across 15 selected streams in Arunachal Pradesh. A total of 2,014 individuals belonging to 46 species, 25 genera, and seven families were recorded from the region. Baetidae was the dominant family, followed by Heptageniidae, whereas Caenidae and Vietnamellidae were the least represented. Diversity indices revealed considerable spatial variation, with the highest Shannon diversity, richness, and evenness observed in mid-elevation, fast-flowing streams, and the lowest values recorded at the sites with fewer individuals. Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) exhibited that environmental variables such as pH, stream width, elevation, water current, canopy cover, and temperature influenced species distribution.

Graphical Abstract

An integrated study on the biodiversity and ecology of mayflies (Insecta: Ephemeroptera) in Arunachal Pradesh, India

Keywords

CCA

Diversity indices

Eastern Himalaya

Ephemeroptera

FFGs

Subjects

Biodiversity

Anbalagan, S. & Dinakaran, S. (2006) Seasonal variation of diversity and habitat preferences of aquatic insects along the longitudinal gradient of the Gadana River basin, South- West Ghats (India). Acta Zoologica Bulgarica, 58 (2), 253–264.

Anbalagan, S., Kaleeswaran, B. & Balasubramanian, C. (2004) Diversity and Trophic categorization of aquatic insects of Courtallam hills of Western Ghats. Entomon, 29 (3), 1–6.

APHA. (2005) Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater. 21st Edition. American Public Health Association. Washington, DC.

Baptista, D.F., Buss, D.F., Dias, L.G., Nessimian, J.L., Silva, E.D., Neto, A.H., Carvalho, S.D., Oliveira, M.A. & Andrade, L.R. (2006) Functional feeding groups of Brazilian Ephemeroptera nymphs: ultrastructure of mouthparts. Annales De Limnologie-international Journal of Limnology, 42, 87–96. https://doi.org/10.1051/limn/2006013

Barathy, S., Sivaruban, T., Pandiarajan, S., Rajasekaran, I. & Rosi, M. B. (2021) Diversity and community structure of Ephemeroptera in freshwater stream of Megamalai hills, Tamil Nadu, India. Entomon, 46 (4), 279–284. https://doi.org/10.33307/entomon.v46i4.638

Birara, M. (2020) Distribution and composition of benthic macroinvertebrates functional feeding groups and ecosystem attributes under different land use patterns in Kipsinende River, Kenya. International Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Studies, 8 (5),112–119.

Chadd, R.P., England, J.A., Constable, D., Dunbar, M.J., Extence, C.A., Leeming, D.J., Murray-Bligh, J.A. & Wood, P.J. (2017) An index to track the ecological effects of drought development and recovery on riverine invertebrate communities. Ecological indicators, 82, 344–356. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2017.06.058

Davy-Bowker, J., Murphy, J.F., Rutt, G.P., Steel, J.E.C. & Furse, M.T. (2005) The development and testing of a macroinvertebrate biotic index for detecting the impact of acidity on streams. Archiv für Hydrobiologie, 163, 383–403.https://doi.org/10.1127/0003-9136/2005/0163-0383

Dudgeon, D. (1999) Tropical Asian Streams: Zoobenthos, Ecology and Conservation. Hong Kong University Press, Hong Kong. 820 pp.

Hilsenhoff, W.L. (1971) Changes in the downstream insect and amphipod fauna caused by an impoundment with a hypolimnion drain. Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 64, 743–746. https://doi.org/10.1093/aesa/64.3.743

Jacobus, L.M., Macadam, C.R. & Sartori, M. (2019) Mayflies (Ephemeroptera) and their contributions to ecosystem services. Insects, 10 (6). https://doi.org/10.3390/insects10060170

Kluge, N.J. (2004) The Phylogenetic System of Ephemeroptera. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, Netherlands. 331 pp. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-0872-3

Koneri, R., Nangoy, M.J. & Saroyo, T.E.T. (2017) Diversity and community composition of dragonfly (Insecta: Odonata) in Tangkoko Nature Reserve North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Bioscience Research, 14 (1), 01–08.

Merritt, R.W. & Cummins, K.W. (2006) Trophic relationships of macroinvertebrates. In: Hauer, F.R. & Lamberti, G.A. (eds) Methods in Stream Ecology, New York: Academic Press, pp. 585–609. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-012332908-0.50036-X

Merritt, R.W., Cummins, K.W. & Berg, M. (2008) (eds.) An Introduction to the Aquatic Insects of North America, 4^th edition, Dubuque: Kendall/ Hunt.

Merritt, R.W., Cummins, K.W. & Campbell, E.Y. (2014) Uma abordagem funcional para a caracterização de riachos brasileiros. In: Hamada, N., Nessimian, J.L. & Querino, R.B. (eds) Insetos Aquáticos da Amazônia Brasileira:taxonomia, Biologiae Ecologia. Editora do Inpa, Manaus, pp. 69–87.

Paudel, P.K., Sipos, J. & Brodie, J.F. (2018) Threatened species richness along a Himalayan elevational gradient: quantifying the influences of human population density, range size, and geometric constraints. BMC Ecology, 18, 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12898-018-0162-3

Priyanka, G.L. & Prasad, G. (2014) Diversity of aquatic insects (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera) in Kallar stream and its tributaries. Journal of Aquatic Biology and Fisheries, 2, 493–499.

Sivaramakrishnan, K.G. (1992) Composition and zonation of aquatic insect fauna of Kaveri and its tributaries and the identification of insect fauna as indicator of pollution. DOE Project Number 22/18/89-Re.

Sivaruban, T., Barathy, S., Srinivasan, P. & Isack, R. (2020a) Temporal variation of mayfly community (Ephemeroptera) in response to ecological attributes in Gadana River, Tamilnadu, India. Entomon, 45 (2), 115–122. https://doi.org/10.33307/entomon.v45i2.519

Sivaruban, T., Barathy, S., Srinivasan, P. & Isack, R. (2020b) Feeding Patterns and Strategies of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera in Relation to Seasonality, Landscape Elements and Mesohabitats. Acta Aquatica Turcica, 16 (4), 558–570. https://doi.org/10.22392/actaquatr.744336

Sivaruban, T., Barathy, S., Srinivasan, P., Isack, R. & Rosi, B. (2020c) Impact of ecological attributes and feeding categorization of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (EPT) insects in Kiliyur falls of Eastern Ghats, India. Entomon, 45 (3), 171–179. https://doi.org/10.33307/entomon.v45i3.548

Sivaruban, T., Barathy, S. & Srinivasan, P. (2021) Diversity and distribution of Trichoptera in three streams of Eastern Ghats, India. Indian Journal of Ecology, 48 (3), 771–774.

Sonaimuthu,K., Muralikrishnan, S., Muthukatturaja, M., Balasubramanian, C., Balachandran, C. & Arun Nagendran, N. (2024) Water quality analysis and bio-monitoring potential of aquatic insects in the selected streams of Munnar, Kerala. Indian Journal of Entomology, 86 (2), 419. https://doi.org/10.55446/IJE.2024.1618

Srinivasan, P., Sivaruban, T., Isack, R. & Barathy, S. (2019) Bio-monitoring and Detection of Water Quality using Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (EPT) Complex in Karanthamalai Stream of Eastern Ghats. Indian Journal of Ecology, 46 (4), 818–822.

Subramanian, K.A. & Sivaramakrishnan, K.G. (2005) Habitat and microhabitat distribution of stream insect communities of the Western Ghats. Current Science, 976–987.

Subramanian, K.A., Selvakumar, C. & Vasanth, M. (2024a) Insecta: Ephemeroptera. In: Faunal Diversity of Dihang-Dibang Biosphere Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh, India: Conservation Area Series. Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, 76, 105–114.

Subramanian, K.A., Selvakumar, C., Vasanth, M. & Sinha, B. (2024b) Insecta: Ephemeroptera. In: Faunal Diversity of Tale Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh, India: Conservation Area Series. Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, 77, 101–114.

Svensson, A., Bellamy, A.S., Van den Brinck, P.J., Tedengren, M. & Gunnarsson, J.S. (2018) Assessing the ecological impact of banana farms on water quality using aquatic macroinvertebrate community composition. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 25, 13373–13381. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-8248-y

Timm, H., Ivask, M. & Möls, T. (2001) Response of macroinvertebrates and water quality to long-term decrease inorganic pollution in some Estonian streams during 1990–1998. Hydrobiologia, 464, 153–164. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013999403209

Trivedy, R.K. & Goel, P.K. (1984) Chemical and Biological Methods for Water Pollution Studies. Environmental Publications, Karad. 215 pp.

Vaidya, R.A., Shrestha, M.S., Nasab, N., Gurung, D.R., Kozo, N., Pradhan, N.S. & Wasson, R.J. (2019) Disaster risk reduction and building resilience in the Hindu Kush Himalaya. In: Wester, P., Mishra, A., Mukherji, A., Shrestha, A. (eds) The Hindu Kush Himalaya Assessment. Springer, Cham, pp. 389–419. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92288-1_11

Vasanth, M., Subramanian, K.A., Selvakumar, C. & Kubendran, T. (2023) Mayflies (Insecta: Ephemeroptera) of the Indian Himalaya and future challenges. Zoosymposia, 24, 094–101. https://doi.org/10.11646/zoosymposia.24.1.10

Zedkova, B., Radkova, V., Bojkova, J., Soldán, T. & Zahradkova, S. (2015) Mayflies (Ephemeroptera) as indicators of environmental changes in the past five decades: A case study from the Morava and Odra River Basins (Czech Republic). Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 25, 622–638. https://doi.org/10.1002/aqc.2529