Climate change shortening mayfly life cycle?

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A recent National Geographic Daily News article led with with this headline:
Short Life of British Mayfly Halved by Climate Change

It goes on to report on a five year study in the River Dove in northern England which found that Ephemera danica - the British version of the Green Drake - has shifted from a two-year to a one-year life cycle.  

Researchers suspect warmer stream temperatures are speeding up the instects' metabolism.  They (the maflies, not the researchers) are also getting smaller as a result. This creates bigger problems for anglers than having to start tying smaller flies;  with a smaller body, the females cannot produce as many eggs, leading to sparser hatches, and threatening the survival of the species itself. There's more bad news in the article.  I won't spoil it for you - click the link above to read it.

 Thanks to Jack Williams for finding this article.

 

 

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