Potamophylax coronavirus

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Potamophylax coronavirus is a small caddisfly found only in Kosovo. It belongs to the family Limnephilidae and was named after the COVID-19 pandemic to raise awareness about pollution harming freshwater life in the region.

What it looks like
- Males: brown head and appendages, with darker brown to black main body parts; brown legs and tarsi that get darker toward the tip.
- Females: lighter and resemble another species called P. juliani; head and appendages brown, legs brown, and the prothorax and other plates light brown; tarsi darken toward the tips. The forewings are about 8.5 mm long, light brown, and have very long bristles. The female’s genitalia are not fully described because the terminalia were damaged.

Where it lives
- Type locality: a tributary of the Krojet e Ali Pashë Gucisë springs in the Lumbardhi i Deçanit river, within Bjeshkët e Nemuna National Park, Kosovo. The species is likely microendemic to a high-altitude area around 2,000 meters above sea level, roughly 120 kilometers west of Pristina.
- The river habitat has been affected in recent years by the construction of a hydropower plant, leading scientists and local groups to describe the situation as a “battlefield” over river management.

Discovery and relations
- Described in 2021 by Halil Ibrahimi and colleagues. It is part of the Potamophylax winneguthi species group and is morphologically similar to P. juliani and P. winneguthi. Type specimens were collected in 2014.

Why the name
- The name coronavirus refers to the COVID-19 pandemic and was chosen to highlight environmental pollution affecting Kosovo’s rivers. It is one of the first organisms named after the pandemic.