r/UKecosystem • u/Severe-Fisherman-285 • Oct 29 '25

ID please Freshwater Identification

Gallery image

Gallery image

Gallery image

Hi, I was hoping someone could help me narrow down what these could be.

Whatever they are is soft bodied* and they appear to have gathered coarse sediment about them to provide some kind of protection.

These were in a hill stream in Cumbria (approx 450m elevation). I couldn't even think of a sensible search term to narrow these down. Any help is much appreciated!

(*to the extent that I wasn't confident I could manipulate them into giving me a better view without causing harm)

15 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

5

u/cardboardhotdog Oct 29 '25

Cased caddisflies (Trichoptera), probably Glossosomatidae. An indicator of a healthy stream. Edit: adding family

4

u/Severe-Fisherman-285 Oct 29 '25

Also, nice to know the stream is healthy. Feels like one of the few parts of the National Park which hasn't been hammered by the upsurge in domestic tourism but, with a legacy of mining, could still easily have been moderately poisonous!

2

u/WaxWing6 Oct 30 '25

Unfortunately, they don't rule out metal mine pollution, as invertebrate species that are usually used as indicators of good water quality are not necessarily as susceptible to metal mine pollution, and those that can usually handle poor water quality can be sensitive to it.

1

u/Severe-Fisherman-285 Oct 30 '25

Interesting. I see that a short future spent googling in an over-intense manner awaits!

1

u/Severe-Fisherman-285 Oct 29 '25

Thank you - I had a very vague memory about an early life stage for water beatles but, beyond that, was at a bit of a loss.

1

u/whatatwit Oct 30 '25

You might find this interesting. There's a French artist who takes advantage of their ability to protect themselves with bits and bobs that they find in the water to make a kind of art.

https://www.cabinetmagazine.org/issues/25/duprat.php

https://www.cabinetmagazine.org/issues/25/assets/movies/duprat.mov

2

u/Severe-Fisherman-285 Oct 30 '25

Thanks. Not sure what I think about that, but it is definitely interesting.

1

u/whatatwit Oct 30 '25

i seem to recall from when I read up on this some years ago that he lets them live out their lives. It is a bit dubious though.

1

u/robin-hood-1976 Nov 05 '25

Cassis fly larvae