Ephemeroptera: Heptageniidae of Gunnison County, ColoradoCinygmula ramaleyi
Small Western Gordon Quill, Dark Red Quill, Dark Great Red Quill (Dodds) 1923
Updated 26 September 2024
TSN 100567
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References
Bradley,R 1984 Behavioral adaptations of Cingmula ramaleyi (Ephemeroptera: Heptagenidiae) to stream current (Doctoral dissertation). PDF
Abstract: "Cinygmula ramaleyi nymphs were studied both in an artificial stream and in a Northwest Montana stream in order to determine their behavioral adaptations to the water current. The nymphs were found with greatest frequency in low to moderate current velocity areas of the creek. They have a very limited ability to hold their position in the stream at these velocities. Consequently Cinygmula ramaleyi nymphs remain under the rocks on the bottom of the stream and do not move out from this
shelter."
Dodds,GS 1923 Mayflies from Colorado: descriptions of certain species and notes on others. Transactions of American Entomological Society 69, 93-116.
Dodds described this species in the genus Ecdyurus, which has been changed to Cinygmula, hence his name as an author in parentheses. Quote from page 101: "The most abundant nymph of South Boulder Valley from 8,000 to 11,000 feet, where it lives among rocks on the bottoms of swift streams, clinging to the surface, among and under them, but not on the surface exposed to the direct force of the swift water. It has also been found in two lakes at high altitude."
Edmunds Jr., GF 1952b Studies on the Ephemeroptera Part II. The taxonomy and biology of the mayflies in Utah. PhD Thesis, University of Massachusetts. 399 pages.
(Quoted from Jensen's thesis) Quote from page 152: "At Paradise Park Reservoir in the Uintah Mountains [Utah], specimens of C. ramaleyi from the cold spring-fed streams entering the reservoir have distinctly amber wings, while specimens from the stream originating as overflow of the reservoir have hyaline wings and are paler and smaller."
Jensen,SL 1966 The Mayflies of Idaho (Ephemeroptera). M.S. Thesis, University of Utah, Utah. 364 p.
Quote from page 158: "Male imagos of this species are distinct from other Idaho representatives in possessing bilobed penes. Size and the amount of amber suffused on the wings, although usually diagnostic for the species, is variable. [See Edmunds quote above] As in common with most species in the genus, variability appears to be quite extreme.
Nymphs of this species occur in small to moderate streams usually above elevations of 4,000 feet. Adults have been reported by Edmunds (1952b) as swarming from late in the evening until dark. They have been collected from August to September."
McCafferty,WP; Durfee,RS; Kondratieff,BC 1993 Colorado mayflies (Ephemeroptera): an annotated inventory. Southwestern Naturalist 38 (3) 252-274. PDF
Quote from page 260: "The male genitalia of this species, while clearly diagnostic, place it near C. par. Traver's (1935) key can be misleading, however, because the wings of C. ramaleyi may or may not be tinged with amber. This tinge may actually be due to the variable amount of an oily residue on the wing membrane, as becomes apparent where it leeches out in specimens that have been preserved in alcohol for some time (McCafferty, unpubl.)."
McCafferty,WP and Provonsha, AV The Mayflies of North AmericaSpecies List (Version 12Jan2009)
Here is the geographic range and synonyms for Cinymula ramaleyi:
Cinygmula ramaleyi (Dodds), 1923 [CAN:FN,NW;USA:NW]
* Cinygma ramaleyi (Dodds), 1923 (comb.)
* Ecdyonurus ramaleyi Dodds, 1923 (orig.)
* Iron tollandi Dodds, 1923 (syn.)
* Rhithrogena ramaleyi (Dodds), 1923 (comb.)
McDunnough,J 1933 The nymph of Cinygma integrum and description of a new heptagenine genus. Canadian Entomologist 65:73-76. PDF
After describing the new species Cinygma integrum, the author observes some differences in the larvae and adults that have been lumped in the genus Cinygma. As a result he describes the genus Cinygmula and later discusses Cinygmula ramaleyi. Plate 3 on page 76 has illustrations of mouthparts and gills of Cinygmula ramaleyi.
Rader RB and Ward JV 1988 Influence of regulation on environmental conditions and the macroinvertebrate community in the upper Colorado River. Regulated Rivers: Research and Management 2:597-618. PDF
Heptagenid mayflies were eliminated at the regulated site directly below the dams, but C. ramaleyi reappeared at the recovery site downstream.
Radford,DS and Hartland-Rowe,R 1971 The life cycles of some stream insects (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera) in Alberta. The Canadian Entomologist, 103(4) 609-617.
Names have changed since 1971:
| 1971 Name |
2020 Name |
| Nemoura besametsa |
Prostoia besametsa |
| Epeorus deceptivus |
Epeorus deceptivus |
| Epeorus longimanus |
Epeorus longimanus |
| Ephemerella coloradensis |
Drunella coloradensis |
| Arcynopteryx aurea |
Perlinodes aurea |
| Nemoura cinctipes |
Zapada cinctipes |
| Nemoura columbiana |
Zapada columbiana |
| Nemoura oregonensis |
Zapada oregonensis |
| Cinygmula ramaleyi |
Cinygmula ramaleyi |
| Ephemerella doddsi |
Drunella doddsi |
| Rhithrogena doddsi |
Rhithrogena hageni |
Abstract: " The life histories of Nemoura besametsa, Epeorus deceptivus, Epeorus longimanus, and Ephemerella coloradensis are described as "fast seasonal" types and Arcynopteryx aurea, Nemoura cinctipes, Nemoura columbiana, Nemoura oregonensis, Cinygmula ramaleyi, Ephemerella doddsi, and Rhithrogena doddsi as "slow seasonal" types according to Hynes´ (1961) classification. All of the species are univoltine with the exception of N. cinctipes which may be bivoltine. There seems to be a correlation between life cycles and food availability. A means of ecological separation in the four Nemoura species is elucidated. Stream temperature was found to influence growth rates."
Slater,J and Kondratieff,BC 2004 A review of the mayfly genus Cinygmula McDunnough (Ephemeroptera: Heptageniidae) in Colorado. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 77(2) 121-126. PDF
Ward,JV and Berner,L 1980 Abundance and altitudinal distribution of Ephemeroptera in a Rocky Mountain stream. In Advances in Ephemeroptera biology (pp. 169-177). Springer US. PDF
Zuellig,RE; Heinold,BD; Kondratieff,BC and Ruiter,DE 2012 Diversity and Distribution of Mayflies (Ephemeroptera), Stoneflies (Plecoptera), and Caddisflies (Trichoptera) of the South Platte River Basin, Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming, 1873-2010.U.S. Geological Survey Data Series 606, 257 p. PDF - caution 46MB
Quote from page 30: "Remarks: Dodds (1923) originally described this species from South Boulder Creek near Tolland, Colorado. Cinygmula larvae can be common in high gradient streams at higher elevations in Colorado." Elevation collected 6,950-10,500 ft. Adults were found June-October.
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