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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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Female Rhithrogena hageni (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun Pictures

I was surprised by the olive cast on the body of this female Rhithrogena dun, which led me to mistake it for a western green drake (Drunella) in the field. I was pleasantly surprised to get a closer look and find something I hadn't collected yet. Its species ID is based on proximity to male spinner collected on the same trip, as well as physical similarity (size, tergite coloration, dark streaks on the femora) to that specimen.

Female Rhithrogena hageni (Heptageniidae) (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington
Female Rhithrogena hageni (Heptageniidae) (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington
Female Rhithrogena hageni (Heptageniidae) (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington
Dorsal view of a Female Rhithrogena hageni (Heptageniidae) (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington
Ventral view of a Female Rhithrogena hageni (Heptageniidae) (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington
Ruler view of a Female Rhithrogena hageni (Heptageniidae) (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington The smallest ruler marks are 1 mm.
Lateral view of a Female Rhithrogena hageni (Heptageniidae) (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington

This mayfly was collected from Mystery Creek #249 in Washington on July 4th, 2020 and added to Troutnut.com by Troutnut on July 12th, 2020.


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Female Rhithrogena hageni (Western Black Quill) Mayfly Dun Pictures

Collection details
Location: Mystery Creek #249, Washington
Date: July 4th, 2020
Added to site: July 12th, 2020
Author: Troutnut
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