Salmonflies
Pteronarcys californica
The giant Salmonflies of the Western mountains are legendary for their proclivity to elicit consistent dry-fly action and ferocious strikes.
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This specimen appears to be of the same species as this one collected in the same spot two months earlier. The identification of both is tentative. This one suffered some physical damage before being photographed, too, so the colors aren't totally natural. I was mostly photographing it to test out some new camera setting idea, which worked really well for a couple of closeups.
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Pale Evening Spinners
Like most common names,"Pale Evening Spinner" can refer to more than one taxon. They're previewed below, along with 5 specimens. For more detail click through to the scientific names.
Mayfly Species Ephemerella dorothea dorothea
These are sometimes called Pale Evening Spinners.
Ephemerella dorothea consists of two subspecies, which both produce excellent action. Ephemerella dorothea dorothea is a small species of Sulphur in the East, and Ephemerella dorothea infrequens (formerly Ephemerella infrequens) is one of the two main Pale Morning Dun hatches of the West. The remainder of this page focuses on the dorothea dorothea subspecies, and Ephemerella dorothea infrequens is discussed separately on its own page.
This is one of the most challenging mayfly hatches on Eastern waters. On many streams, it follows or overlaps hatches of the larger, lingering Ephemerella invaria.
This is one of the most challenging mayfly hatches on Eastern waters. On many streams, it follows or overlaps hatches of the larger, lingering Ephemerella invaria.
I keyed this nymph carefully under a microscope to check that it's Ephemerella dorothea.
Mayfly Species Ephemerella invaria
These are sometimes called Pale Evening Spinners.
This species, the primary "Sulphur" hatch, stirs many feelings in the angler. There is nostalgia for days when everything clicked and large, selective trout were brought to hand. There is the bewildering memory of towering clouds of spinners which promise great fishing and then vanish back into the aspens as night falls. There is frustration from the maddening selectivity with which trout approach the emerging duns--a vexing challenge that, for some of us, is the source of our excitement when Sulphur time rolls around.
Ephemerella invaria is one of the two species frequently known as Sulphurs (the other is Ephemerella dorothea). There used to be a third, Ephemerella rotunda, but entomologists recently discovered that invaria and rotunda are a single species with an incredible range of individual variation. This variation and the similarity to the also variable dorothea make telling them apart exceptionally tricky.
As the combination of two already prolific species, this has become the most abundant of all mayfly species in Eastern and Midwestern trout streams.
Ephemerella invaria is one of the two species frequently known as Sulphurs (the other is Ephemerella dorothea). There used to be a third, Ephemerella rotunda, but entomologists recently discovered that invaria and rotunda are a single species with an incredible range of individual variation. This variation and the similarity to the also variable dorothea make telling them apart exceptionally tricky.
As the combination of two already prolific species, this has become the most abundant of all mayfly species in Eastern and Midwestern trout streams.
This small Ephemerella invaria nymph was at least a month away from emergence.
See 42 more specimens...
Mayfly Species Leucrocuta aphrodite
These are very rarely called Pale Evening Spinners.
This is one of the few Eastern species of the Heptagenia complex to produce fishable hatches.