Header image
Enter a name
Lateral view of a Male Baetis (Baetidae) (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #43 in New York
Blue-winged Olives
Baetis

Tiny Baetis mayflies are perhaps the most commonly encountered and imitated by anglers on all American trout streams due to their great abundance, widespread distribution, and trout-friendly emergence habits.

27" brown trout, my largest ever. It was the sub-dominant fish in its pool. After this, I hooked the bigger one, but I couldn't land it.
Troutnut is a project started in 2003 by salmonid ecologist Jason "Troutnut" Neuswanger to help anglers and fly tyers unabashedly embrace the entomological side of the sport. Learn more about Troutnut or support the project for an enhanced experience here.

Phantom Crane Flies

This common name refers to only one family. Click its scientific name to learn more.

True Fly Family Ptychopteridae

These are pretty much always called Phantom Crane Flies.
See Tipulidae for details about craneflies. This family is not known to differ from them in any ways important to anglers except appearance.

This family has evolved a really unusual feature for an insect: its legs also serve the function of wings. The tibiae are greatly enlarged and help catch the wind. The legs usually have white tips, making them very easily identifiable in flight. There is a ghostly look to a dark, sparse insect flying around the stream, usually alone, with the fixed bright white points of its leg tips surrounding it like a halo.
Dorsal view of a Ptychopteridae (Phantom Crane Fly) True Fly Larva from unknown in Wisconsin

Phantom Crane Flies

Scientific Name
Troutnut.com is copyright © 2004-2024 (email Jason). privacy policy