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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 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.
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Caddisfly Genus Micrasema (Little Grannoms)

I have only seen two species of this small genus mentioned in angling books, and neither was said to be anything special.

Where & when

In 308 records from GBIF, adults of this genus have mostly been collected during June (31%), July (24%), May (20%), August (12%), and April (6%).

In 222 records from GBIF, this genus has been collected at elevations ranging from -30 to 8566 ft, with an average (median) of 1742 ft.

Genus Range

Start a Discussion of Micrasema

References

Caddisfly Genus Micrasema (Little Grannoms)

Taxonomy
Species in Micrasema: Micrasema bactro, Micrasema rusticum
16 species (Micrasema alexanderi, Micrasema arizonicum, Micrasema bennetti, Micrasema burksi, Micrasema charonis, Micrasema dimicki, Micrasema diteris, Micrasema etra, Micrasema gelidum, Micrasema onisca, Micrasema oregona, Micrasema ozarkana, Micrasema rickeri, Micrasema scotti, Micrasema sprulesi, and Micrasema wataga) aren't included.
Genus Range
Common Name
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