Chironomus

Chironomus
Chironomus plumosus adult male
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Diptera
Family:	Chironomidae
Tribe:	Chironomini
Genus:	Chironomus Meigen, 1803
Diversity
at least 640 species

Chironomus is a genus of nonbiting

In the early 20th century the name Tendipes Meigen, 1800 was often used instead.^[1] In 1963 the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature restored the traditional name Chironomus.

Description

Adult Chironomus are midges with the pronotum widest in the middle and bearing a notch, the head usually bearing a pair of small tubercles above the antennal bases, the antennal flagellum of males having 11 segments, and the male genitalia has inferior volsella large and larger than superior volsella. They range from 5 to 13 mm in length. Larvae are red and usually have tubes on the side or bottom of the eighth abdominal segment. These features are not unique to Chironomus, also being found in some related genera.^[2]

Adult males can be distinguished from females by their feather-like antennae.^[3]

Behaviour

When at rest, adults often raise their front legs and vibrate them. This is the source of the genus name, which is derived from "cheironomos" (Greek for "one who moves the hands").^[2]

Habitat

Larvae of Chironomus usually live in aquatic sediment. Those of the C. decorus group, C. riparius group and C. stigmaterus generally live in conditions of high nutrients and low oxygen. There are also Chironomus that live in relatively clean water.^[2]

The larvae of several species inhabit the profundal zone where they can reach relatively high densities. They use a combination of hemoglobin-like proteins and undulatory movements in their burrows to obtain oxygen in poorly oxygenated habitats.^[4]

See also

• List of Chironomus species

Gallery

• 
  Chironomus anthracinus
• 
  Chironomus crassicaudatus
• 
  Chironomus yoshimatsui
• 
  Chironomus sp. larva

References