Fishflies of West Virginia
Family Corydalidae
East Asia is where most of the Dobsonflies and Fishflies of the world live, but the United States and Canada are home to some 80 species. The West Virginia Corydalids (and Corydalids in eastern North America generally) are in two subfamilies, Corydalinae and Chauliodinae.
Fishflies and Dobsonflies are streamside creatures that have a fluttery flight. They are large as insects go, often 30 mm or more in length. Two important family characteristics are the presence of ocelli, and the cylindrical shape of the fourth tarsal segment (Borror and White, 1970).
Chauliodes larvae are most common in ponds and swamps; Nigronia larvae are found in creeks or small rivers. Both are predaceous (Eaton and Kaufman, 2007).
