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.
This specimen resembled several others of around the same size and perhaps the same species, which were pretty common in my February sample from the upper Yakima. Unfortunately, I misplaced the specimen before I could get it under a microscope for a definitive ID.
I tried to photograph this salamander but it kept scurrying away from the camera. The rocks in this little backwater are covered with a thin layer of very easily disturbed silt, so anywhere I followed it I didn't have much time to photograph before the water was too turbid for a good shot. This is the best I got.
the trout here in the smokies love the little black salamanders. i find alot of them in the stomachs of the little native brookies we have around here. when ever im bait fishing(Lord, forgive me of my sins)i always look for a salamander to put on my hook because they do catch fish. im hoping to get away from that, but i havent succeeded in tying a fly that replicates one but i hope to figure it out or find an already existent pattern.