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Lateral view of a Female Hexagenia limbata (Ephemeridae) (Hex) Mayfly Dun from the Namekagon River in Wisconsin
Hex Mayflies
Hexagenia limbata

The famous nocturnal Hex hatch of the Midwest (and a few other lucky locations) stirs to the surface mythically large brown trout that only touch streamers for the rest of the year.

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 Neophylax (Autumn Mottled Sedges)

In his tables in Caddisflies, Gary LaFontaine ranks this as the fourth most important genus in the Pacific Northwest, where the main species are Neophylax rickeri and Neophylax splendens, but other species may be important across the country. Swisher and Richards in Selective Trout say that Neophylax fuscus is very important in the Midwest.

Where & when

Time of year : Fall

Neophylax caddisflies emerge in concentrated numbers in the fall because they enter diapause during the summer, which synchronizes their emergence to within three weeks on a given stretch of stream.

In 150 records from GBIF, adults of this genus have mostly been collected during October (43%), September (27%), June (8%), July (7%), August (7%), and November (5%).

In 123 records from GBIF, this genus has been collected at elevations ranging from 30 to 8566 ft, with an average (median) of 1601 ft.

Genus Range

Hatching behavior

Time of day : Daytime

Habitat: Riffles

They emerge in the surface film.

Egg-Laying behavior

The ovipositing behavior of this genus is not well-documented, but what is known varies by species.

Specimens of the Caddisfly Genus Neophylax

1 Female Adult
3 Larvae

2 Underwater Pictures of Neophylax Caddisflies:


Start a Discussion of Neophylax

References

Caddisfly Genus Neophylax (Autumn Mottled Sedges)

Taxonomy
21 species (Neophylax acutus, Neophylax aniqua, Neophylax atlanta, Neophylax auris, Neophylax ayanus, Neophylax consimilis, Neophylax delicatus, Neophylax etnieri, Neophylax mitchelli, Neophylax nacatus, Neophylax occidentis, Neophylax oligius, Neophylax ornatus, Neophylax ottawa, Neophylax securis, Neophylax sinuatus, Neophylax slossonae, Neophylax smithi, Neophylax stolus, Neophylax toshioi, and Neophylax wigginsi) aren't included.
Genus Range
Common Name
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