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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.

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.
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 Hexagenia limbata (Hex) Mayfly Spinner Pictures

I found this Hexagenia limbata spinner on a gas station in upstate New York, not a region known for heavy hatches of this species.

Ruler view of a Female Hexagenia limbata (Ephemeridae) (Hex) Mayfly Spinner from Gas station in Whitney Point, NY in New York The smallest ruler marks are 1 mm.
Ventral view of a Female Hexagenia limbata (Ephemeridae) (Hex) Mayfly Spinner from Gas station in Whitney Point, NY in New York

This mayfly was collected from Gas station in Whitney Point, NY in New York on July 13th, 2005 and added to Troutnut.com by Troutnut on April 14th, 2006.


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Female Hexagenia limbata (Hex) Mayfly Spinner Pictures

Collection details
Location: Gas station in Whitney Point, NY, New York
Date: July 13th, 2005
Added to site: April 14th, 2006
Author: Troutnut
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