Aquatic Macro Invertebrates

Aquatic Macroinvertebrates Resource Page

Macro Invs

For internet links to Macro sites, click here.

For Single page pictorial guides of families within an order, Click here.

Insects in general have always fascinated me and for some reason I am drawn to aquatic insects, Many insect start their life in water. Dragonfly, Damselfly, Mayfly, Caddisfly, Stonefly.... (is there a "fly" theme here?) Then you have the true flies (Order Diptera -literally two wings) like the Crane Fly and midges, With common names, true flies (only 2 wings not 4) generally have a space in their name, like House Fly, Horse Fly, and Crane Fly

There is a way to roughly determine the health of a stream by the presence of certain macroinvertebrates . These not only include insects, but some other "large enough to see with the naked eye" and "do not have a backbone". Leeches, mussels, crayfish, and snails to name a few. This process is called SQM.

https://ohiodnr.gov/discover-and-learn/education-training/stream-quality-monitoring/stream-quality-volunteers

Other states have similar programs, The insect tolerance, or intolerance, to pollution and other water quality is used to assign points if a macroinvertebrate is found,

I have created several sorting trays to teach beginners to recognize the macros used in this analysis for Ohio. The best one is made from acrylic and is not easy to manufacture. This is expensive compared to the alternative- a plastic tackle box (tray) made by Plano and is sold by Walmart (and others) for a couple of dollars. The model of the tackle box needed is in the file name (3650 of 3750). The 3650 Pro Latch (actual manu. #23650001) uses letter size paper while 3750 requires legal size paper. 3650 is great for most people, but if you are planning on pulling out individuals from the compartments, the 3750 is much easier.

The Plano grids are divided into the 3 scoring categories, separated by a colored band. The bands jog to make everything fit into the tray. They acrylic grid does not have the color bands as the tray had colored dividers. The acrylic grid is here only if you wanted to see the grid.

Assembling the grids.

The tackle trays come with dividers that need installed.

1. Print out the PDF grid desired. Sometimes the scale of the printout needs changed at account for different printers and computers. The size is correct when the major ribs in the tray align with the printout. The printout will eventually go in the lid (removable) so trim it down and allow about a 1/4 inch less on each side so it can be laminated and sealed.

2. With the lid removed and concave side up, set the grid in the lid and set the tray in the lid on top the grid. A completed tray is pictured below so you can see the relationship.

3. Using the inserts that came with the tray, insert them on each lines in the grid. Once all have been placed, remove each divider, one at a time and put a SINGLE drop of glue on one of the slots that holds the divider in place. One small drop of E6000 glue (Hobby Lobby) is all that is needed. The trays are made with HDPE, which does not take glue well but E6000 seems to work for this application. If they are not glued they tend to fall out. It will look like the pic below.

4. Laminate your grid. Check office supply stores (OfficeMax, Kinkos, Staples) to see if they laminate.

To store the tray, place the grid on top of the tray and snap the lid in place. When ready to use the tray, unsnap the lid completely from the tray and set the grid in the inverted lid. Making sure the slots lineup, set the tray on top of the grid. Add water to the tray (before or after assembly) and have fun collecting and sorting