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Artistic view of a Male Pteronarcys californica (Pteronarcyidae) (Giant Salmonfly) Stonefly Adult from the Gallatin River in Montana
Salmonflies
Pteronarcys californica

The giant Salmonflies of the Western mountains are legendary for their proclivity to elicit consistent dry-fly action and ferocious strikes.

Dorsal view of a Setvena wahkeena (Perlodidae) (Wahkeena Springfly) Stonefly Nymph from Mystery Creek #199 in Washington
As far as I can tell, this species has only previously been reported from one site in Oregon along the Columbia gorge. However, the key characteristics are fairly unmistakable in all except for one minor detail:
— 4 small yellow spots on frons visible in photos
— Narrow occipital spinule row curves forward (but doesn’t quite meet on stem of ecdysial suture, as it's supposed to in this species)
— Short spinules on anterior margin of front legs
— Short rposterior row of blunt spinules on abdominal tergae, rather than elongated spinules dorsally
I caught several of these mature nymphs in the fishless, tiny headwaters of a creek high in the Wenatchee Mountains.
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.
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Updates from August 14, 2004

Photos by Troutnut from the Namekagon River and in Wisconsin and

A black bear cub stares down at me from a large pine near one of my favorite trout streams.

From McNaught Road, near the upper Namekagon in Wisconsin
A black bear cub shimmies down a tree trunk near one of my favorite trout streams.

From McNaught Road, near the upper Namekagon in Wisconsin
A 19-inch smallmouth puts a hefty bend in my 5-weight.

From the Namekagon River below Hayward in Wisconsin
The 5 am mist rises off a classic hole on a favorite river. I'd just spent the last few hours of that moonless night working this hole with big pusher flies in the pitch black darkness, running on caffeine until about 4:15 and adrenaline from that point on, after feeling a whale of a brown trout on my line for about 15 seconds. Unfortunately the fish spit the hook, but it was an unforgettable experience.

Closeup insects by Troutnut from Miscellaneous Wisconsin and the Namekagon River in Wisconsin

Male Heptageniidae (March Browns, Cahills, Quill Gordons) Mayfly Dun from unknown in Wisconsin
Male Hexagenia atrocaudata (Ephemeridae) (Late Hex) Mayfly Spinner from the Namekagon River in Wisconsin
I found this spinner and a few of his friends bobbing above the river amidst a snowstorm hatch of white Ephoron flies.

Updates from August 13, 2004

Photos by Troutnut from Devil's Creek and Miscellaneous Wisconsin in Wisconsin

This is a classic small freestone brookie stream.

From Devil's Creek (Rusk County) in Wisconsin
On my way to a favorite brook trout stream, I spotted several sandhill cranes in a Wisconsin farm field.

From Rusk County, WI in Wisconsin
A riffle in a small stream feeds into a deep pool that holds several large brookies.

From Devil's Creek (Rusk County) in Wisconsin

On-stream insect photos by Troutnut from the Couderay River in Wisconsin

This nighttime flash photograph shows a bunch of Ephoron mayflies flying around during the hatch.  So many of them fly around with their dun shucks attached that it seems like they molt from the dun to spinner stage in mid-air.  Actually they molt on streamside vegetation like other mayflies, but they sometimes take off to mate before they're completely finished.

From the Couderay River in Wisconsin

Updates from August 7, 2004

Photos by Troutnut

Closeup insects by Troutnut from Miscellaneous Wisconsin in Wisconsin

Stenacron (Heptageniidae) (Light Cahill) Mayfly Nymph from unknown in Wisconsin
Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Nymph from unknown in Wisconsin
Here's a Baetid nymph close to hatching, with darkened wingpads. It's got dark bands on the tail at the middle and tip, a rounded, oval 7th gill, and gill veinlets which are visible but not conspicuous.

Updates from August 6, 2004

Underwater photos by Troutnut

A large schools of white suckers travels the headwaters of a famous midwestern trout stream.
A large schools of white suckers travels the headwaters of a famous midwestern trout stream.

Closeup insects by Troutnut from Miscellaneous Wisconsin in Wisconsin

Lateral view of a Triaenodes (Leptoceridae) Caddisfly Adult from unknown in Wisconsin
Female Ephemerellidae (Hendricksons, Sulphurs, PMDs, BWOs) Mayfly Dun from unknown in Wisconsin

Updates from August 4, 2004

Closeup insects by Troutnut from Miscellaneous Wisconsin in Wisconsin

Female Stenonema modestum (Heptageniidae) (Cream Cahill) Mayfly Spinner from unknown in Wisconsin
This one was collected in in association with this male. It looks quite different, but that's often the case between spinner genders.
Male Stenonema modestum (Heptageniidae) (Cream Cahill) Mayfly Spinner from unknown in Wisconsin
Here's a goofy picture of a Caenis dun falling off the back of a leaf, never to be seen again.  These mayflies are very tiny and fragile, and very hard to capture and photograph without damaging. This little dun hatched from the nymph in a tub of nymphs while I was picking through for aquatic specimens to photograph... I grabbed the leaf it hatched onto and tried to take some pictures but it got away after about half a picture.

Female Caenis (Caenidae) (Angler's Curse) Mayfly Dun from unknown in Wisconsin
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