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.

We were lucky to be able to fish through this storm as it skirted around us to the north, giving us just enough clouds to prompt a BWO hatch but keeping the lighting at a safe distance.

From Slough Creek in Wyoming

Stream photos

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Psychodidae True Fly Larva Psychodidae True Fly Larva

Lateral view of a Psychodidae True Fly Larva from Mystery Creek #308 in Washington

This wild-looking little thing completely puzzled me. At first I was thinking beetle or month larva, until I got a look at the pictures on the computer screen. I made a couple of incorrect guesses before entomologist Greg Courtney pointed me in the right direction with Psychodidae. He suggested a possible genus of Thornburghiella, but could not rule out some other members of the tribe Pericomini.

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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 Epeorus albertae (Pink Lady) Mayfly Dun Pictures

I collected this male dun with a female dun and a female spinner of the same species. Identification was initially difficult because I didn't catch a male spinner, and this dun was missing its legs. I was able to tease the spinner's penes out of the dun's shuck after it expired, although the shape was pretty similar. Fortunately, the shape is a distinctive match to the Epeorus albertae species group. In the key in Needham et al (1935), it keys to Epeorus youngi, which is now considered a synonym of albertae. It's also a very plausible dun version of this spinner collected a few years earlier, a few drainages to the north, at a similar time of year. Additionally, the female dun and spinner collected with this one match very closely those I've collected in the past.