Chironomids are a large group of invertebrates that live in various aquatic habitats. The distribution range of these invertebrates has become varied due to anthropogenic impacts; as such, their distribution can be used as an indicator of environmental health. Adult chironomids are well known in South Korea; however, the larvae have rarely been studied due to difficulties associated with morphological classification. To address this lack of information, we collected larvae from four important rivers in South Korea and summarized their taxonomic morphological characteristics. The antennae, mandible, and mentum were used for larval taxonomic characterization. In this study, we describe the basic morphological features and key pictorial features of 20 species of chironomids, representing 16 genera.

농업생태계의 환경별로 깔따구류의 분포를 밝히고 우점종을 이용한 유기물 분해능을 평가하고자 대단위경작지, 친환경농업지, 생활하수 유입지, 축산폐수 유입지 및 주변수로 등의 5개 서식처별로 나누어 '04~'06년까지 각 구획을 대표하는 총 78개 지점에서 깔따구과 및 공서 무척추동물을 정량 채집하였다. 그 결과, 농업지대의 깔따구류는 총 16종으로 동정되었다. 서식지 유형별로 출현한 종수를 보면, 축산폐수 유입지에서 11종, 대단위 농경지는 8종,