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Lateral view of a Male Baetis (Baetidae) (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #43 in New York
Blue-winged Olives
Baetis

Tiny Baetis mayflies are perhaps the most commonly encountered and imitated by anglers on all American trout streams due to their great abundance, widespread distribution, and trout-friendly emergence habits.

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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Chironomidae (Midge) True Fly Larva Pictures

Lateral view of a Chironomidae (Midge) True Fly Larva from the Gulkana River in Alaska
Ventral view of a Chironomidae (Midge) True Fly Larva from the Gulkana River in Alaska
Ruler view of a Chironomidae (Midge) True Fly Larva from the Gulkana River in Alaska The smallest ruler marks are 1 mm.

This true fly was collected from the Gulkana River in Alaska on July 17th, 2011 and added to Troutnut.com by Troutnut on July 20th, 2011.


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Chironomidae (Midge) True Fly Larva Pictures

Collection details
Location: Gulkana River, Alaska
Date: July 17th, 2011
Added to site: July 20th, 2011
Author: Troutnut
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