LAUSR

* Correspondence: [email protected] While the individuals of Chironomidae spend their larval stages in aquatic habitats, the adults are found in terrestrial environments. The larval chironomids are used as indicator organisms to determine the quality level of aquatic habitats. Moreover, they are very important organisms in the food chain by being food of fish and other aquatic invertebrates (Armitage et al., 1995; Ardıç and Uygun, 1996; Epler, 2001; Çakmak et al., 2002; ŞanlıBenzer et al., 2007). The adult chironomids flying around aquatic habitats are prey for many invertebrates, frogs, and birds. The studies performed on Chironomidae fauna in inland waters were generally based on their larval stages. However, because of the problems faced during species identifications based on larvae, recent studies started to evaluate the larval and adult individuals together (Sæther and Langton, 2011; Namayandeh and Beresford, 2012). In Turkey, while many studies were performed on larval chironomids, there is only one study on adult chironomids (Reiss, 1985). The present study was performed to determine the Chironomidae (Diptera) fauna of Kırklareli Province in Turkish Thrace and for this aim both larval and adult chironomids were evaluated together taxonomically. Sampling was done between July 2012 and July 2013 to determine Chironomidae specimens in Kırklareli Province. The samples were collected from 66 different localities including all kinds of freshwater ecosystems like lakes, ponds, streams, dam lakes, swamps, and puddles using an Ekman grab and hand mud ladle (Figure 1). The sampling localities are shown in Table 1. The mud samples were washed through mesh nets and preserved in 250-cc plastic bottles containing 70% ethanol. The adult chironomids materials were collected using a sweeping net and 70% ethanol was sprayed on the collected specimens to prevent them from flying. All adult chironomids kept in the sweeping net after alcohol spray were collected by the help of a fine-lead clamp and were preserved in 250-cc plastic bottles containing 70% ethanol. All materials were labelled and transferred to the laboratory for identification. Temporary slides of larval specimens were made in glycerin for initial data (presence, position and length of gills, setae, anal tubules, antenna structure) before permanent sliding and examined under a stereomicroscope (Epler, 2001). For identification of the larval specimens, Sæther (1980), Cranston (1982), Fittkau and Roback (1983), Pinder and Reiss (1983), Epler (2001), and Vallenduuk and Morozova (2005) were utilized. Temporary slides of the adult materials were made in glycerin for initial data (subfamily, antenna structure, body coloration, thorax structure) before permanent sliding and then examined under a stereomicroscope (Wiederholm, 1989). Sæther (1980), Saether (1985), Wiederholm (1989), Armitage et al. (1995), Kyerematen et al. (2000), Langton and Pinder (2007), Saether and Oyewo (2008), and Moubayed-Breil et al. (2012) were utilized for identification of the adult specimens. Abstract: Larval and adult material collected from July 2012 to July 2013 and previously collected larval material were evaluated taxonomically to determine the Chironomidae (Diptera) fauna of Kırklareli Province. Accordingly, a total of 64 species belonging to the subfamilies Tanypodinae, Prodiamesinae, Orthocladinae, and Chironominae of the family Chironomidae were determined, of which Camptocladius stercorarius (De Geer, 1776), Corynoneura sp., Paratanytarsus sp., Ablabesmyia (Ablabesmyia) phatta (Eggert, 1863), Chironomus semireductus (Lenz, 1924), Einfeldia carbonaria (Meigen, 1804), Metriocnemus (Metriocnemus) fuscipes (Meigen, 1818), Rheocricotopus (Rheocricotopus) fuscipes (Kieffer, 1909), and Stictochironomus sp. were determined as new records for Kırklareli Province, Acricotopus lucens (Zetterstedt, 1850), Brillia flavifrons (Johannsen, 1905); Cladopelma virescens (Meigen, 1818), Demicryptochironomus sp., and Harnischia curtilamellata (Malloch, 1915) for Turkish Thrace; and Paratanytarsus laetipes (Zetterstedt, 1850) for Turkish Chironomidae fauna.