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.

Dorsal view of a Ephemerella mucronata (Ephemerellidae) Mayfly Nymph from the Yakima River in Washington
This is an interesting one. Following the keys in Merritt R.W., Cummins, K.W., and Berg, M.B. (2019) and Jacobus et al. (2014), it keys clearly to Ephemerella. Jacobus et al provide a key to species, but some of the characteristics are tricky to interpret without illustrations. If I didn't make any mistakes, this one keys to Ephemerella mucronata, which has not previously been reported any closer to here than Montana and Alberta. The main character seems to fit well: "Abdominal terga with prominent, paired, subparallel, spiculate ridges." Several illustrations or descriptions of this holarctic species from the US and Europe seem to match, including the body length, tarsal claws and denticles, labial palp, and gill shapes. These sources include including Richard Allen's original description of this species in North America under the now-defunct name E. moffatae in Allen RK (1977) and the figures in this description of the species in Italy.
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.

Stonefly Species Allocapnia cunninghami (Little Snowflies)

Species Range

Physical description

Most physical descriptions on Troutnut are direct or slightly edited quotes from the original scientific sources describing or updating the species, although there may be errors in copying them to this website. Such descriptions aren't always definitive, because species often turn out to be more variable than the original describers observed. In some cases, only a single specimen was described! However, they are useful starting points.

Source: Epiproct And Dorsal Process Structure In The Allocapnia Forbesi Frison, Allocapnia Pygmaea (Burmeister), And Allocapnia Rickeri Frison Species Groups (Plecoptera: Capniidae), And Inclusion Of Allocapnia Minima (Newport) In A New Species Group

Male epiproct. Apical segment of upper limb ca. 281 µm long, and armed on the apical ca. 188 µm with dense patch of wave-like spikes (Figs. 79 - 82); apical segment ca. 106 µm wide at base, slightly constricted near mid-length, and expanded to a bluntly rounded tip. Basal segment of upper limb ca. 471 µm long and ca. 56 µm wide at mid-length; basal segment bears a wide, shallow, longitudinal groove from base to near mid-length. Greatest width of lower limb ca. 163 µm; lateral margins of lower limb bearing a sparse row of long setae near apical spoon. Male tergal process. Prominent raised bilobed structure on abdominal tergum 8 and a smaller, slightly raised process on tergum 7 (Figs. 82 - 84). Process on tergum 8 ca. 142 µm wide, covered with scale-like structures, and bearing a shallow, V-shaped notch (Fig. 83); process on tergum 7 ca. 40 µm wide, without scales or notch (Fig. 84).


Start a Discussion of Allocapnia cunninghami

References

Stonefly Species Allocapnia cunninghami (Little Snowflies)

Taxonomy
Species Range
Resources
Troutnut.com is copyright © 2004-2024 (email Jason). privacy policy