Ephemera vulgata

Adults are 14 to 21 mm long and their wings are spotted. The series of dark triangular marks on the upperside of the abdomen is diagnostic of E. vulgata.

Ponds, lakes, canals and slow moving water.

Early summer.

The larvae have mouthparts that look like miniature elephant tusks. They use these tusk like jaws for burrowing in the mud. The large abdominal gills are fringed and used, in part, to create a water current inside the burrow, as a way to maintain a steady flow of oxygen-rich water and food particles.

Widespread in southern Britain, but may be local.

Occasional in Leicestershire and Rutland.