Rhithrogena germanica
| Rhithrogena germanica | |
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| Female R. germanica subimago | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Subclass: | Pterygota |
| Order: | Ephemeroptera |
| Family: | Heptageniidae |
| Genus: | Rhithrogena |
| Species: | R. germanica |
| Binomial name | |
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Rhithrogena germanica Eaton, 1885 |
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| Synonyms | |
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Rhithrogena germanica is a European species of mayfly, and is "probably the most famous of all British mayflies", because of its use in fly fishing. It is known in the British Isles as the March brown mayfly, a name which is used in the United States for a different species, Rhithrogena morrisoni. It emerges as a subimago at the end of winter, and can be distinguished from similar species by a dark spot on the femur of each leg.
Adults and subimagos of Rhithrogena species have two long tails, and readily visible hind wings. R. germanica can only be distinguished from related species such as R. semicolorata (the only other Rhithrogena species in the United Kingdom) by the presence of a dark spot on the femora of the legs.
A similar species, Ecdyonurus venosus (the late March brown or false March brown) is more widespread in Great Britain, but emerges later in the year than R. germanica.
Rhithrogena germanica is widespread across Central and Northern Europe. It is under threat across Europe, and Great Britain may be a stronghold for the species.
R. germanica was first described by Alfred Edwin Eaton based on a single male imago collected from the River Rhine at Laufenburg, Switzerland. Its current distribution in Switzerland only extends to a few tributaries of the Rhine (Limmat, Sihl, Thur, Töss).
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