The Program provides educational experiences about the structure and sensitivity of streams, and about actions needed to protect and improve the quality of the river system. The day was a lot of fun and a huge success. The remarkable winter stoneflies are useful indicators of river conditions, playing a role like the one that canaries used to play for miners.
All stoneflies require a rich supply of dissolved oxygen, which is plentiful in winter streams.
Winter stoneflies are dormant during most of the year when we look for problems caused by stormwater runoff, warm water, or excessive plant growth. Winter Stoneflies are active in January when conditions provide an opportunity to look for signs of toxic pollutants in the absence of these other problems. Both families eat decaying leaves and algae. Capniidae emerge from the stream as adults between late January and March while Taeniopterygidae emerge in March and early April. These stoneflies are predatory and most emerge between April and July.