Cryptochironomus rostratus

Kieffer, 1921

Body
Medium sized larvae, up to 9 mm long. Living larvae red. Claws on the posterior parapods are simpel. No lateral and ventral tubules (Wiederholm, 1983; Moller Pillot, 1984a).

Head
The gula and ventral occipital margin are pale.
Antenna
The antenna consists of 5 segments. The basal segment is al long as or longer than the flagellum. Lauterborn organs are absent Cryptoch antenna.
Mentum
The mentum has one broad yellow median tooth and 6 pairs of lateral teeth. The outer tooth may be subdivided Cryptoch mentum 8. The ventromental plates as wide as or wider than the mentum and tapering lateraly. The striae fine and simpel Figuur 12 Vallenduuk.
Labrum
SI is simpel and labral lamellae are absent Cryptoch labrum. The pecten epipharyngis consists of three lobes with a serrated margin. The premandible has 4-6 apical teeth.
Mandible
The mandible without a dorsal tooth. Apical tooth with 2 inner teeth. The pecten mandibularis is absent and seta interna with 4 branches, 2 smooth and 2 plumose.

Differential characteristics
The yellow median tooth, fused with the first of the six pairs of brown lateral teeth is distinctive for the genus Cryptoch mentum 8.
The head length 460 µm separates C. rostratus from the other species except from C. denticulatus. C rostratus has fine simpel striae on the ventromental plates while those of C. denticulatus are coarse and branched.

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