The idea

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Mayfly in the Classroom came about as part of the Wild Trout Trust's "Trout in the Town" initiative (TinTT blog) and aims to provide an extremely cheap means of bringing some of the iconic and important species of river invertebrate to life within the classroom environment. The crucial links between these iconic "indicator species" and their predators (including clean-water-loving trout) show how delicate and important our stream foodwebs are. Typical costs for classroom equipment would be £15 to £20 (less than $30). The core set of activities concentrate on an initial visit to the local stream to identify and collect nearly mature nymphs (larvae) of local mayfly species (the apparatus should be suitable for almost all mayfly groups). Specimens are brought back into the classroom and housed in cut-down clear plastic drinks bottles (2-litre cola or lemonade/sparkling water bottles are ideal). Using a simple aeration system and very low-tech cooling apparatus (freezer packs in a water bath) the nymphs are maintained for approximately two weeks and allowed to hatch into adult mayflies. Pupils are responsible for maintaining the correct temperature, keeping the aeration constant and observing/recording emergence of adult flies. These adult flies are then transferred into a refrigerator within a carton (with air holes punched in the lid). They undergo the unique second moult (mayflies are the only group of winged insects to have two separate adult winged forms) and the pupils can then return to the stream-side to release the adult flies. Detailed and fully illustrated step-by-step instructions can be found under the pdf download tab here: pdf downloads. The "Overview" tab (above left) gives a sample schedule for a typical programme.