Little Iron Blue Quills

This is one of the most prolific genera of mayflies in North American trout streams. Their small size permits the growth of up to three generations per year, and they are good dry-fly insects because they often hatch in impressive numbers and the duns ride the water for a long time before taking flight.

The genus Baetis and its species are probably the most misidentified mayflies in angling. Many who see mayflies too small to imitate with a size 16 Adams call them Baetis, especially if they're olive in coloration. In reality, Baetis (though the most prominent) is only one of several very similar and abundant genera in the family Baetidae. It seems species in the family are perpetually being reclassified, and identifying any of them, even to genus level is difficult. The angler who wants to describe what is seen streamside usually has only four choices:

1. Call them "Blue-Winged Olives" as most do. the problem is this name has lost all meaning due to being applied to dozens of species across several families (many of which have neither blue wings nor olive bodies). Besides, the name was originally coined for a species of British ephemerellid, the family where this common name should properly reside.

2. Call them "baetids", the Latin name for referring to members of the Baetidae family as a group. While technically accurate scientifically, it doesn't tell the listener or reader much about their appearance.

3. Call them outmoded scientific names - Even calling them by the updated name is usually risky for most species in the field. Adding to the difficulty by using names from outdated nomenclatures? Talk about confusion...

4. Call them "little (whatever color they are) quills." Perhaps this is the best choice as at least it's more accurately descriptive.

The fact is many are so similar that even alot of the specimens in the hatch pages can't be keyed below the family level with absolute certainty; at least from what's observable in the photos alone. They often require observation with a microscope and extensive knowledge of the subtle differences for accurate determinations. So - the next time a fishing buddy identifies a little olive mayfly from a distance using an obsolete name like Baetis vagans, just smile and nod...

For anglers raised on Schwiebert, Swisher, etc., it is often difficult to locate many important species in the newer literature. When working with older taxonomies and/or angling texts, the following hatch page links may prove helpful:

Baetis devinctus = Diphetor hageni (can be an important eastern species)
Baetis hiemalis = Baetis brunneicolor (important Midwest species with a national distribution)
Baetis insignificans = Acentrella insignificans (can be important in some western locales)
Baetis parvus = Diphetor hageni (very important western species)
Baetis propinquus = Labiobaetis propinquus (important in the West with a national distribution)
Baetis pygmaeus = Acerpenna pygmaea (can be important with distribution across all regions)
Baetis vagans = Baetis tricaudatus (most abundant and important species nationwide)

The relatively new genus Fallceon has two species of interest that are made up of several previous Baetis species. They are distributed nationally and may prove significant as more is learned about the angling opportunities they present, especially in the the South and Southwest.

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This is one of the most important species of the Baetidae family. It is distributed across the country but most of its fame comes from excellent hatches in the West. Prior to many other former species being combined with Baetis tricaudatus, most angling literature considered it the most populous and widespread western species of the Baetidae family.

This species was previously known as Baetis propinquus, a name from older nomenclatures and angling literature familiar to many western anglers. Prior to its current listing, it did a brief stint in the genus Pseudocloeon. The irony is that though this species has hind wings, it was the last species remaining in Pseudocloeon (before the genus recent Nearctic taxonomic demise) which was best known for its species lacking hind wings as an identifying character.

Though it has a national distribution its most important hatches occur in the West, usually hatching between the larger broods of Baetis tricaudatus. Western anglers experiencing a hatch can easily confuse them with the larger Baetis bicaudatus as both nymphs appear similar with only two tails. Besides size, the adults can be separated from bicaudatus (with the help of a little magnification) because L. propinquus lacks acute costal projections on its tiny hind wings. Conversely, the presence of hind wings and lack of conical mesonotal projections makes them easy to tell from the more common and equally tiny Acentrella turbida.

Baetis tricaudatus is undeniably the most widespread and abundant baetid on the continent and arguably the most important mayfly species to trout and anglers alike. Eastern anglers used to know these important mayflies by the storied name of Baetis vagans. Conversely, the usually much larger and late Fall hatching brood of Baetis tricaudatus was considered an important Western species with its own tradition. But, entomologists recently determined that they are both in fact the same species. The nomenclature conventions guiding entomologists do not account for a name's regional fame among fishermen, and new or obscure species names may replace their old favorites. Sometimes taxa with disparate traditions are combined. Baetis vagans is one such casualty. Fortunately, trout think like Shakespeare: A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. The rose that was vagans has lost none of its charm. This species is multibrooded with the hatches of Spring being larger flies. As the weather warms the following broods are composed of progressively smaller flies. In the East, they range in size from 16 to 20. In the West, they may run a size larger.

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