Dangers in Crimea: plants, marine animals, insects, snakes. Flora and fauna of the Crimea Features of the modern Crimean fauna

The small size of the peninsula and its isolation from the mainland led to some poverty Crimean fauna... This is manifested not so much in the scarcity of species as in the small number of individuals of each species.

Some species are endemic (for example, the Crimean ground beetle), others are found in very limited areas (for example, the Crimean gecko lizard, which is a rare and endangered species, lives only on the southern coast no higher than 300 m above sea level between Sevastopol and Alushta). There are relic animals - witnesses of ancient times (leopard snake, crested newt).

Crimean red deer, roe deer, fallow deer, wild boar, foxes, stone marten, badger live in the forests of mountain Crimea. Birds of mountain forests: jays, woodpeckers, blackbirds, owls, a small number of woodcocks, as well as a black-headed vulture and a griffon vulture (the latter are no more than 20-30 individuals).

Peculiar animal world underground cavities where worms, beetles, molluscs live. Colonies nest in cracks in rocks, in caves, and sometimes in attics of houses bats(horseshoe bat, long-eared bat, long-winged, bat, bat, leather).

In the steppes of the peninsula, rodents (gophers, hamsters, voles, jerboas) are found, which foxes, ferret, weasel eat. The European hare is widespread (it remains gray in winter as well, since winters in Crimea are not very snowy). The world of birds in the lowland Crimea is represented by larks, partridges, and quails. In the northern part of the peninsula, where there are numerous shallow bays of the Sivash, the Karkinitsky Bay of the Black Sea, lakes and watered rice paddies, there is a expanse for the waterfowl of the Crimea: ducks, ibex, coots, chasers, gulls. Herons nest in the reed beds.

Thousands of swans gather during molting and wintering on the famous Swan Islands. Thanks to these birds, which have an amazing ability to evoke only light and kind feelings in all people without exception, the small and inconspicuous islands of Sary-Bulat have long been declared protected and known throughout the world. There are also large colonies of herring gulls and others.

Among the reptiles, there are many lizards - the nimble, rocky, colorful, Crimean and legless lizard, the yellow-bellied lizard. The latter is often mistaken for a snake and therefore killed, and yet it is an ancient surviving relic.

There is only one species in Crimea poisonous snakes- steppe viper (cases of bites are very rare), all the rest are harmless and never attack humans (common and water snakes, yellow-bellied and leopard snakes, copperhead).

Among insects, deer beetles, rhinoceroses, iridescent with a green-purple sheen of ground beetles, barbel beetles, and cicadas are interesting. The pests of forests, orchards and vegetable gardens are the gypsy moth, moth, scale insects, Colorado potato beetle.

A lot different types Crimean animals are found in fresh water bodies. These are representatives of crustaceans: freshwater crab, cyclops, daphnia, amphipods, crayfish. Many of them serve as food for fish: carp, crucian carp, ruffs, etc. The aborigines of mountain rivers - brook trout, chub, Crimean barbel.

Settlements with their complex architecture, parks, ponds have become a habitat for many representatives of the animal world. Among such animals in the Crimea there are many insects, rodents and birds of the Crimea (ringed turtledove, rock dove, crow, rook, jackdaw, swallows, sparrows).

The fauna was not always the same as it is today. This is evidenced by excavation materials, discovered fossils. It is known that several million years ago, when the climate was wetter and warmer, giraffes, antelopes, hornless rhinos lived in the Crimea. After their extinction, the peninsula was inhabited by camels, southern elephants, cave bears. In the era of the Quaternary (Pleistocene) cooling in the Crimea, white hare, wolverine, lynx, reindeer, black grouse, white and tundra partridges were widespread, and the remains of a mammoth were found in the vicinity of Simferopol (Chokur-Chinsky grotto). In the basin of the Zuya River (Kiik-Koba grotto), bones of the following species were found: saiga antelope, bison, mammoth, brown bear, arctic fox ... All these species, except for the extinct mammoth, now inhabit much north of the Crimea.

Of the now extinct animals of Crimea in different time Biruli's gophers, Eversmann's hamsters, cave bears, hyenas and levs, tarpans, wild European donkeys, and giant deer were settled. And among those that did not live in the Crimea before, there were red gophers, marmots, beavers, jerboas, European forest and water voles, root voles, narrow-headed voles, brown bears, wild cats, kulans, wild boars, bison and rams.

At the beginning of the XX century. in Crimea, animals began to acclimatize. Mouflons were brought from the island of Corsica and from the Askania-Nova reserve, from Kyrgyzstan - mountain goats, from Altai - a teleutka squirrel, from the south Of the Far East- wild boars, from the Odessa region - wild rabbits. In Crimea, pheasants and mountain partridges-chukar were settled. The pilengas fish acclimatization has been successfully completed in the Sea of ​​Azov.

Many species of wild animals of Crimea (196 species, or more than 50% of the entire Crimean fauna) are included in the Red Book of Ukraine and are under state protection. Among them: black stork, bottlenose dolphins and common dolphins, bustard, yellow-bellied crane, demoiselle crane, white-tailed eagle, swallowtail, common cicada, little bustard, pink starling and many others.

The flora of the Crimea is very rich and varied, it includes more than 2.5 thousand plant species. The species composition of the Crimean vegetation is striking not only with its abundance, but also quality composition... Typical for the south of Ukraine, here are no more than a third of the steppe and plants common for the mountains and foothills of temperate climatic zone Europe, but more than 50% of vegetation species are of Mediterranean origin and are representatives of the Mediterranean range.

In addition, there are at least 10% of the so-called endemic plant species, that is, those that can be found only in one place on the planet - on the Crimean Peninsula. Such an abundance of endemics allows us to consider the nature of the Crimea unique. Growing in the mountainous part of the peninsula, high juniper, folded snowdrop, small-fruited strawberry are characteristic of the Tertiary period, which was almost two million years ago. But, for example, taiga wintergreen and stoneberry are not at all typical for southern latitudes, but are more characteristic of taiga and northern deciduous forests. These are relict plants of the Ice Age, from which they remained in the southern latitudes of Crimea due to its unique geographical position.

2016-11-08

Lavrik Natalia

Today at Crimea there are 58 species

terrestrial mammals.

Among the lagomorphs in Crimea there are only two types: European hare and acclimatized rabbit. The first is primordial "native"... Distributed everywhere. Loves the boundaries of steppe and forest areas. Hunting object. European hare, unlike many others wild animals, gets along very well with humans and can be found everywhere, with the exception of the central city quarters.

Rabbit is a guest Crimea... Lives in open steppe areas. Destroyed by man.

We call a stone marten with white fur on the throat and chest. An elegant, graceful, beautiful white-haired woman is a brave, voracious and incredibly agile predator, not alien, however, from vegetarian food. In summer and autumn, the marten is supplemented with thorns, hawthorns, pears and grapes. Unlike the common marten, the white-haired woman does not climb trees, but if she gets into a home chicken coop (usually in the middle of the night, then playfully, in a few minutes, she will strangle the whole bird family reeling from horror there.

Crimean predators: raccoon dog, weasel, marten. The raccoon dog, a Far Eastern predator of little use for fishing, was acclimatized in Crimea twice... For the first time, these animals did not take root, and after the second resettlement they mastered the lowland areas, including Belogorsky and Leninsky. The beast is omnivorous, but more prone to animal food.

The smallest predator is the weasel, the largest are the badger and, perhaps, the fox. Eat either clean animal food, like a ferret and a weasel, or a mixed diet, like a marten, fox, badger, raccoon dog. Of these, only foxes and weasels are quite numerous. Last Crimean the wolf was killed in 1922 at the northern foot of Chatyrdag.

The marten lives in the foothills, the raccoon dog, or, as it is incorrectly called, the Ussuri raccoon, settles along North Crimean Canal, weasel is common throughout the territory Crimea... Badger is a forest dweller. Ferret and steppe fox are more common in steppe areas. The mountain-forest part of the peninsula is characterized by another, according to scientists, a subspecies of the fox - mountain-forest.

In the mountains Alpine fox lives in Crimea, and in the steppe its subspecies is the steppe fox. The main fox food is mice, gophers, hamsters, hedgehogs, bird eggs, and if you're lucky, then the birds themselves, hares and wild rabbits... And already without pleasure, from hunger, he eats insects, frogs, lizards, and even carrion. Need will force! Not a fox, not even a wolf (which is believed to be no longer in Crimea) not equal in bloodlust with a tiny, sweet and very funny, at first glance, affection.

Artiodactyl peninsula: Crimean red deer, wild boar, roe deer.

The pride of the peninsula - Crimean red deer, the oldest inhabitant of the mountain-forest Crimea... The graceful roe deer is also from the aborigines, a relative of deer, and the other four species of artiodactyls were brought to Crimea as a man, and acclimatization was successful for some, but not for others.

Roe deer in Crimea.

Once upon a time, roe deer lived in the forests and in the steppe part of the peninsula. People drove them to mountain-forest areas, and now most of the roe deer live on the slopes of the Main mountain range. Meeting in the forest with this gentle, graceful animals- not that uncommon. Seeing a person, the animal freezes, and realizing that it has been discovered, it is carried away into the depths of the forest.

Belonging to the same family, roe deer are very similar to deer. Both those and others eat herbaceous plants, tree shoots, buds, leaves and bark. Like deer, male roe deer wear branched antlers, hold mating tournaments in August-September, and then lose their weapons so that in the spring, preparing for the next season, they begin to grow new ones. On roe deer in Crimea foxes and martens attack, but their worst enemy is, of course, the poacher.

Roe deer have excellent hearing. The alarm signal of one roe deer is accepted by all animals within a radius of three kilometers.

The largest of our beasts Crimean red deer are found in mountain forests. There are males weighing up to 260 kilograms and up to 140 centimeters high at the withers. The deer is light-legged, slender, has a proud head carriage and wide branching antlers. It is to this noble article that it owes its name. Century Crimean deer 60-70 years old... The age of young males corresponds, as a rule, to the number of processes on the horns. The age of the older animals determined by the chewing surface of their teeth.

Antlers are a deer's weapon. V Crimea has no enemies(except for hunters, so the horns serve only for tournament battles in September mating season... At this time, usually before sunrise, the forest is filled with the inviting roar of males.

Wild boar has long lived in Crimea but to XIX century was completely exterminated by hunters. To restore the population in 1957, one wild boar was brought here from the Chernihiv region, and 34 from the Primorsky Territory. wild pigs.

Boars are omnivorous. The basis of the diet is roots, acorns, mushrooms, all kinds of fruits and nuts. In addition, there are insects, their larvae, rodents, bird eggs, and even when it is completely hungry, the boar does not hesitate to take carrion.

In November-December, lonely adult males join the herds wild pigs with young animals.

Shrews (shrews)- extremely useful creatures, in the mass they destroy pests. Of the shrews in the mountain Shrews live in Crimea, in the steppe and mountain areas - white-toothed shrews, on the banks of reservoirs - a farm.

Despite the relatively small area of ​​the territory, Crimean peninsula differs in variety. The steppes are adjacent to wet forests and mountains. Such are favorable for the prosperity of the fauna. In Crimea, there are many endemic species, and cosmopolitan animals are well acclimatized.

Features of the fauna of Crimea

In the north of the peninsula are endless. Crimean mountains stretch from north to east. The southern territories lie in the subtropical zone, dominated by mild climate... The east is represented by small capes and bays. In the west, there is a flat coastline. Numerous rivers are calm; in the summer heat, some of them dry up completely. The species composition of animals is poorer than in neighboring continental lands. There are also many endemic species in Crimea. This is due to the isolation of the peninsula.

The Crimean Mountains and the Black Sea coast belong to the Mediterranean zoogeographic area and are distinguished by the absence of many common forest species, and the presence of Balkan, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean and endemic species. Mountain forest fauna especially rich on the northern slopes of Yaila, in the forests of the Crimean nature reserve, which is inhabited by the Crimean deer (endemic subspecies), the Crimean chamois, pine marten, fox, stone marten, mole, and other species.

It includes hawks, owls, jays, petrotikas, mountain buntings, blackbirds, chives and several Mediterranean species. There are also several types. Some animals, such as mouflon, squirrel, etc. - acclimatized in the protected area of ​​the Crimea. The endemic Crimean gecko, Crimean lizard and rock lizard live from the southern coast. Typical representatives are the cicada, the praying mantis, the centipede, the Crimean scorpion and the Crimean black beetle. Many Mediterranean species are also common. Among insects, representatives of the order Diptera dominate. The original flora and fauna of Crimea are best preserved in the protected areas of the peninsula.

Below are photos and short description some representatives of the animal world of the Crimea.

Mountain fox

A representative of the Canidae family lives in,. On the territory of the peninsula, the fox is distributed evenly. The body of the fox reaches 90 cm in length, and the tail is 50 cm. The mass ranges from 2 to 14 kg. They settle in secluded places: crevices of rocks, windbreaks, hollows of trees, burrows of other animals. The diet of animals includes birds and fruits of trees. The activity of foxes directly depends on the food supply. The offspring appears in early May, and closer to autumn, the young are already independently foraging. Currently, fox hunting is allowed, which has negative consequences. Due to the decline in the population of these, the number of rodents is growing.

Black sea garfish

The fish lives in the warm waters of the Black and Azov seas... She has a slender body and an elongated jaw. The color is greenish, there is a dark stripe on the back. An adult individual weighs on average about 500 g. Body length varies from 50 to 75 cm. Sargan feeds on sprat, anchovy and shrimp. He pursues his prey in jerks, developing high speed. These fish are not sedentary and are constantly on the move. Sargan tastes like saury, but many are scared off by the greenish color of its bones. Despite this, the fish is not poisonous.

White marten

A predatory mammal that prefers to settle in broadleaf forests, caves, crevices and ravines. Marten can often be found in forest parks and abandoned houses. The body length is 40-59 cm, and the weight is 1-2 kg. The marten feeds on small rodents, grass, tree bark, mushrooms and mosses. Often animals destroy birds' nests. The marten lives in hollows, jumps well from tree to tree and leads. Puppies are born in April, and a few months later they go hunting with their mother. Natural enemies are the wolf, fox, lynx, eagle owl and eagle.

Teleut squirrel

Initially, the small rodent lived in the forests of Altai, but in the thirties of the last century it was brought to the Crimea. Here the squirrel has perfectly acclimatized. The teutka differs from other subspecies of the common squirrel in its large size: the body length without a tail is 28 cm, the mass often exceeds 300 g. The teutka stands out with tassels on the ears and a fluffy tail, and in winter it changes color from red to gray-brown. Prefers for habitation mixed forests and parks. The squirrel can travel 3 m at a time by jumping from tree to tree. Hollows serve as a refuge for animals, which they insulate with the help of dry foliage, moss, grass. In urban settings, squirrels settle in birdhouses. The diet is quite varied and includes: nuts, seeds of pine trees, mushrooms, berries and fruits. In the warm season, proteins are strenuously stocked up with food for the winter. Natural enemies are foxes, martens, owls, eagle owls and hawks.

Steppe viper

The snake is listed in the Red Book as a vulnerable species. The reptile lives in the plain and mountain steppes, along the banks of reservoirs, in alpine meadows and in clay ravines. The body is 50 cm long, females are larger than males. The snake's sharp muzzle extends forward. Have steppe viper brown skin color, a zigzag pattern runs along the back. In search of food, the reptile often climbs onto the branches of trees and bushes, in addition to this, the viper swims well. The food source is insects, lizards, chicks, rodents and frogs. The viper venom is dangerous for children and people with health problems. The snake never attacks first, so all bite incidents occur through human negligence. Natural enemies of the steppe viper are badgers, ferrets, hedgehogs, storks, owls and eagles.

Crimean deer

These animals are endemic to the peninsula. In terms of their size, they differ little from other species of deer. The height of the male at the withers is 1.3-1.6 m, the weight reaches 260 kg. The horns of young males resemble matches; in adults, processes grow. Deer prefer light forests, alternating with meadows and overgrown burnt areas. They consume food of plant origin: foliage, buds, young shoots of trees. In summer, animals add mushrooms, berries and moss to their diet. Cereals play an important role in the life of these crops. With the onset of winter, deer migrate towards the southern coast. Large animals have practically no natural enemies.

Griffon vulture

A bird of prey that belongs to the Yastrebins family, living on the southern coast of the peninsula. The body length of the vulture is 110 cm, and the wingspan is 250 cm. The head of adults is covered with white down, the rest of the plumage is brown. Birds make nests in hard-to-reach rock crevices. The female lays a single egg at the end of winter. Both partners are involved in hatching. The chick flies out of the nest at the age of three months. Vultures are scavengers, the basis of their diet is animal carcasses. They do not use the skin and tendons, in the first place they feed on the liver. The bird does not attack live animals and can starve for a long time. After searching for food, the vultures return to the nest to rest. Natural enemies are crows, which can destroy eggs and chicks. Vultures are considered a rare species; about 130 pairs nest on the peninsula. Today, the birds are under the protection of two Crimean nature reserves.

The fauna of Crimea is a unique complex of the most different types characterized by high rates of isolation from a number of other geographically adjacent faunas inhabiting the territories of the Caucasus, Ukraine and the Balkans. Today in Crimea there are both endemics and many representatives of rare or endangered animals.

Mammals

The mammalian class of Crimean animals includes representatives of six species of the order of insectivores, eighteen species of the order of bats, fifteen species of the order of rodents, seven species of carnivores, six species of artiodactyls and just a couple of species of lagomorphs.

Crimean red deer

The largest and most conspicuous inhabitant of the Crimean forests is distinguished by its slenderness, proud head planting and wide branched horns, which disappear annually in February or March. The average weight of an adult sexually mature male of the Crimean red deer reaches 250-260 kg, with the height of the animal at the withers in the range of 135-140 cm. The lifespan of a cloven-hoofed mammal rarely exceeds 60-70 years.

Steppe polecat, or white polecat

A nocturnal mammal belonging to the genus and weasels from the marten family is the largest member of the genus. The average body length of the animal varies from 52 to 56 cm, with a mass in the range of 1.8-2.0 kg. Obligate predator has a high, but sparse hairline with a clearly visible and dense underfur light color... The animal is characterized by a dark color of paws and tail, as well as a very peculiar coloring of the muzzle.

Badger

Birds

About nine dozen species of Crimean birds are classified as rare, including such rather large predators as the steppe eagle, burial ground, vulture and black vulture. Among the Crimean birds, there is also a large number of songbirds.

Blackbird

A sedentary and migratory songbird. Length adult is a quarter of a meter, with an average weight in the range of 90-120g. Females have a brown coloration with light spots on the back. The males are characterized by black plumage. Birds settle in areas of mixed and broadleaf forests, in the territory of city parks and gardens, where these birds prefer to keep in pairs.

Pheasant

Males of this species are distinguished by very bright plumage, in which a gentle red color with black spots prevails. The beautiful feathers are complemented by a white ring at the neck. The female is characterized by a gray color with streaks. They are noticeably distinguished from any other chickens by the presence of a long and pointed tail. Such a bird prefers to take off noisily and suddenly, vertically upward, after which it flies strictly horizontally.

Demoiselle crane

The steppe crane is the smallest and second most common crane. Such birds fly with a well-coordinated and clear "key", headed by the leader, who sets the whole rhythm of flight. The height of one of the most beautiful birds is approximately 88-89 cm, with an average weight of 2-3 kg. There is black plumage on the head and neck, and long tufts of white feathers are very clearly distinguishable behind the bird's eyes.

Pastor

Adults have a kind of crest on their heads. The wings, tail, head and neck of the bird are characterized by black coloration with the presence of a metallic shade. The rest of the plumage is pink. The natural habitat of the pink starling is open spaces with cliffs, stone clusters and rocky cliffs, where the bird has become numerous and quite common. Sometimes such birds settle in different cultural landscapes.

Common eider

Reptiles and amphibians

The Crimean peninsula is home to fourteen species of reptiles, which include lizards, turtles and snakes. Six species of non-venomous snakes are represented by copperhead, common and water snakes, four-striped snakes, leopard and yellow-bellied snakes. Only the steppe viper belongs to this.

Crimean naked gecko

The small lizard is the rarest subspecies of the slender-toed Mediterranean gecko. A rare scaly reptile has a flattened body no more than 5 cm long, differs quite long tail... The color of the Crimean bare-toed gecko is represented by gray or sandy-gray tones. In addition to rather small scales, the sides and top of the gecko's body are covered with large oval-shaped tubercles.

Jellus

A kind of legless lizard is completely devoid of front legs, but has hind limbs, represented by two tubercles located next to the anus. The largest in size representative of the family reaches a length of one and a half meters, is distinguished by a four-sided head and a pointed muzzle. The serpentine body, compressed from the sides, passes into a rather long and mobile tail.

Rocky lizard

A representative of the family Real lizards has a body up to 80-88 mm long. The upper part of the body has a green, brownish, sometimes olive-gray, dark-sandy or ash-gray coloration. In the area of ​​the ridge, there are a couple of small dark spots merging into characteristic stripes. On the sides of the body there are dark and light stripes, and in the chest area of ​​the rocky lizard there are characteristic for the species "blue eyes".

Crimean lizard

One of the common varieties of wall oviparous lizards has a body within 20-24 cm long. The color of the lizard on top is greenish or brownish in color with a pair of longitudinal rows of dark spots. The belly area in adult males is yellowish or orange in color, while in females the lower body is greenish or white. The body is slightly compressed, turning into a long tail.

Agile lizard

Representatives of the species are distinguished by a light lower abdomen and the presence of stripes in the back. At the same time, males, as a rule, have a darker and brighter color, and also have a rather large head. The average length of an adult reaches 25 cm. This lizard received a very unusual name due to its ability to quite abruptly and quickly change the direction of its movement, which allows it to easily confuse its pursuers.

Swamp turtle

Fishes

The ichthyofauna of Crimea is very diverse, and the fish existing here are represented by species that live in the waters of the Azov and Black Seas, and also inhabit various fresh water bodies located on the territory of the peninsula.

Russian sturgeon

The representative of the sturgeon family has a living and anadromous form. The fish is distinguished by the presence of gill membranes, accreted to the intergill space with the absence of a fold, a short and rounded snout, and an interrupted lower lip. The body is usually covered with rows of stellate plates. The back area is characterized by a gray-brown coloration, and the sides are distinguished by a gray-yellow color.

Sterlet

The valuable commercial fish of the sturgeon family is a popular object of lake and pond breeding. Against the background of other members of the family in more early dates enters the period of puberty, uses mainly mosquito larvae in nutrition. It is assumed that the natural diet of females and males is markedly different, which is due to different environmental conditions.

Black Sea-Azov Shemaya

The representative is very rare species from the cyprinid family, it has an elongated and low body with lateral compression, the maximum length of which, as a rule, does not exceed 30-35 cm. The dorsal fin is noticeably carried backward. The ray-finned fish is characterized by a pelagic type of color, has a dark green back with a bluish tint, as well as grayish fins.

Black sea herring

A representative of the herring family is distinguished by a running, laterally compressed body, the height of which is approximately 19-35% of the total length. The fish has a strongly pronounced keel, a low and narrow head, a large mouth with well-developed teeth that are noticeable to the touch. The color of the dorsal surface of the fish is greenish-blue, with the presence of a pronounced silvery-white coloration on the sides of the body.

Blacktip shark

The representative of the order of karhariniformes has a fusiform body, a short and pointed snout, rather long branchial slits, and is also distinguished by the absence of a crest. Most individuals are distinguished by a black edging at the tips of their fins. The average length of an adult shark is one and a half meters. An active predator eats schooling small fish, and juveniles form clusters with size segregation.

Toothed grouper

The fish belonging to the Stone Perch family is characterized by a rather powerful body, the maximum length of which is 162-164 cm, with a weight in the range of 34-35 kg. In this case, the upper jaw of the fish extends beyond the vertical edges of the eye. A distinctive feature of the grouper is the presence of a rounded tail fin and a retractable upper jaw, which takes the form of a tube in the process of opening the mouth.

Spotted wrasse

The fish is medium in size, has an elongated body and a long, pointed head. Males are noticeably larger than females. In the snout area there are thick and rather fleshy lips, and the support of the long dorsal fin is provided by rigid rays located in the front part. The specific feature of the spotted wrasse is a very pronounced sexual dimorphism, as well as a change in color during the spawning period.

Mokoy

Representatives of the monotypic genus are distinguished by an elongated and slender body with long pectoral fins. The color of the upper body is blue, and on the sides the color becomes lighter, so the belly is almost white in color. The maximum body length of an adult blue shark exceeds three meters, with an average weight of 200 kg. The fish is distinguished by triangular and beveled teeth with pronounced serrations.

Black sea trout

Representatives of the salmon subspecies are found in a resident and anadromous form. A very valuable fishing object and popular in the conditions of sport fishing, the species is distinguished by its medium size and standard for the class of Ray-finned fish and the order Salmoniformes. external characteristics... The diet of the Black Sea trout consists of amphipods, as well as aquatic insect larvae and their adult aerial forms.