Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 May 2012
The water boatman Cenocorixa expleta (Uhler) is an inhabitant of saline ponds in the interior of western North America (Jansson 1972; Scudder 1976). In a field survey, Scudder (1969a) failed to find this species in ponds with surface conductivities less than 3900 μmhos/cm. Although it is apparently absent from fresh water, the osmotic responses of C. expleta are essentially those of a fresh water insect (Scudder et al. 1972). Also, salinity tolerance experiments carried out by Scudder (1969b) show that at 15°C adults of the species can survive almost a month in fresh water (less than 800 μmhos/cm) without food. However, it has not been shown that C. expleta can actually develop and breed successfully in fresh water.