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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.

Case view of a Pycnopsyche guttifera (Limnephilidae) (Great Autumn Brown Sedge) Caddisfly Larva from the Yakima River in Washington
It's only barely visible in one of my pictures, but I confirmed under the microscope that this one has a prosternal horn and the antennae are mid-way between the eyes and front of the head capsule.

I'm calling this one Pycnopsyche, but it's a bit perplexing. It seems to key definitively to at least Couplet 8 of the Key to Genera of Limnephilidae Larvae. That narrows it down to three genera, and the case seems wrong for the other two. The case looks right for Pycnopsyche, and it fits one of the key characteristics: "Abdominal sternum II without chloride epithelium and abdominal segment IX with only single seta on each side of dorsal sclerite." However, the characteristic "metanotal sa1 sclerites not fused, although often contiguous" does not seem to fit well. Those sclerites sure look fused to me, although I can make out a thin groove in the touching halves in the anterior half under the microscope. Perhaps this is a regional variation.

The only species of Pycnopsyche documented in Washington state is Pycnopsyche guttifera, and the colors and markings around the head of this specimen seem to match very well a specimen of that species from Massachusetts on Bugguide. So I am placing it in that species for now.

Whatever species this is, I photographed another specimen of seemingly the same species from the same spot a couple months later.
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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Male Rhithrogena virilis Mayfly Spinner Pictures

I'm fairly sure this is a specimen of Rhithrogena virilis based on closeup examination of the reproductive anatomy under the microscope (not shown in photos). The other other species of Rhithrogena this large is Rhithrogena flavianula, but the key in Needham's Biology of Mayflies mentions annulation in the abdomen (visible in some images on bugguide.net) more distinct than that on this specimen.

The body and front wing were both about 15.5 mm long, while the cerci were 40 mm long.

There's a pale amber tinge to the anterior areas of the wings, which doesn't show up all that well against the blue background.

Lateral view of a Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Dorsal view of a Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Tick marks are 1/16". The body and front wing were both about 15.5 mm long.

Ruler view of a Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington The smallest ruler marks are 1/16".
Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington
Ventral view of a Male Rhithrogena virilis (Heptageniidae) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington

This mayfly was collected from the South Fork Sauk River in Washington on July 5th, 2017 and added to Troutnut.com by Troutnut on July 6th, 2017.


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Male Rhithrogena virilis Mayfly Spinner Pictures

Collection details
Location: South Fork Sauk River, Washington
Date: July 5th, 2017
Added to site: July 6th, 2017
Author: Troutnut
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