Montana Field Guide

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Larvae are omnivorous, and use a silken capture net to filter food particles from the flowing water column, including algae, organic particles (detritus) and small invertebrates.

Philopotamidae caddisflies fill the filterer-collector ecological feeding niche of the stream and rivers where they reside. Larvae construct fixed retreats, almost entirely of silt, on the upper surface or side of stable substrates (cobbles, boulders, logs). This capture net is suspended in the current near the upstream entrance to the retreat. Larvae obtain oxygen from the water through paired ventral gills on each abdominal segment. Some species are able to tolerate fairly warm temperatures as long as they are highly oxygeated. Larval populations thrive at sites impacted by moderate organic enrichment.