A rare larva, highly sensitive to water quality, has been found at Horringford on the Eastern Yar.
The caddis fly larva hasn’t been seen on the Island before and it’s being hailed as good news by freshwater ecologist Emma McSwan. She says, “Isle of Wight rivers do not tend to contain the same diversity and abundance of invertebrate life as those on the mainland. What our find shows is that even a creature that is highly sensitive to water quality can survive in the Eastern Yar.” The larva, from the Molannidae family, are known for their ingenious way of pupating, which also offers camouflage from predators. They build a ‘sleeping bag’ out of sand gravel which protects and boosts oxygen flows over their bodies thanks to constant undulation through moving water.