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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 Pycnopsyche guttifera (Limnephilidae) (Great Autumn Brown Sedge) Caddisfly Larva from the Yakima River in Washington
This specimen appears to be of the same species as this one collected in the same spot two months earlier. The identification of both is tentative. This one suffered some physical damage before being photographed, too, so the colors aren't totally natural. I was mostly photographing it to test out some new camera setting idea, which worked really well for a couple of closeups.
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.
Troutnut is a project started in 2003 by salmonid ecologist Jason "Troutnut" Neuswanger to help anglers and fly tyers unabashedly embrace the entomological side of the sport. Learn more about Troutnut or support the project for an enhanced experience here.

Male Drunella flavilinea (Flav) Mayfly Dun Pictures

This dun is smaller than would normally be expected for Drunella flavilinea, but it seems to fit the physical description of that species fairly well. I wasn't sure from the dun pictures alone, so I was hoping it would molt into a spinner. It never made it out of the dun's shuck, but it did begin the process, which allowed me with great care to tease out the last couple abdominal segments of the spinner from the still tightly attached dun shuck, enabling a more confident ID based on the shape of the spinner's penes and sub-genital plate. I also collected a nymph of flavilinea in the same river on the same evening, as well as a shed exuvium that looked large enough to belong to an emerging dun.

The other possibility I considered for a while based on the dun was Drunella pelosa, which would be the right size, but the other characteristics don't fit.

Ruler view of a Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington The smallest ruler marks are 1 mm.
Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Dorsal view of a Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Ventral view of a Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Lateral view of a Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Artistic view of a Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Penes and claspers extracted after the specimen partly molted to a spinner and then expired.They dried out a little bit and were rehydraded for the picture.

Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington
Penes and claspers post-spinner-molt, further dissected and separated to show the shapes.

Male Drunella flavilinea (Ephemerellidae) (Flav) Mayfly Dun from the Cedar River in Washington

This mayfly was collected from the Cedar River in Washington on July 2nd, 2021 and added to Troutnut.com by Troutnut on July 4th, 2021.


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Male Drunella flavilinea (Flav) Mayfly Dun Pictures

Collection details
Location: Cedar River, Washington
Date: July 2nd, 2021
Added to site: July 4th, 2021
Author: Troutnut
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