Header image
Enter a name
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.

Case view of a Pycnopsyche guttifera (Limnephilidae) (Great Autumn Brown Sedge) Caddisfly Larva from the Yakima River in Washington
It's only barely visible in one of my pictures, but I confirmed under the microscope that this one has a prosternal horn and the antennae are mid-way between the eyes and front of the head capsule.

I'm calling this one Pycnopsyche, but it's a bit perplexing. It seems to key definitively to at least Couplet 8 of the Key to Genera of Limnephilidae Larvae. That narrows it down to three genera, and the case seems wrong for the other two. The case looks right for Pycnopsyche, and it fits one of the key characteristics: "Abdominal sternum II without chloride epithelium and abdominal segment IX with only single seta on each side of dorsal sclerite." However, the characteristic "metanotal sa1 sclerites not fused, although often contiguous" does not seem to fit well. Those sclerites sure look fused to me, although I can make out a thin groove in the touching halves in the anterior half under the microscope. Perhaps this is a regional variation.

The only species of Pycnopsyche documented in Washington state is Pycnopsyche guttifera, and the colors and markings around the head of this specimen seem to match very well a specimen of that species from Massachusetts on Bugguide. So I am placing it in that species for now.

Whatever species this is, I photographed another specimen of seemingly the same species from the same spot a couple months later.
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.

This topic is about the Insect Order Trichoptera

Some say caddisflies are even more important than mayflies, and they are probably right. The angling world has taken a while to come to terms with this blasphemy. Caddis imitations are close to receiving their fare share of time on the end of the tippet, but too many anglers still assume all caddisflies are pretty much the same.

Caddis species actually provide as much incentive to learn their specifics as the mayflies do. There is just as much variety in their emergence and egg-laying behaviors, and as many patterns and techniques are needed to match them. Anglers are hampered only by the relative lack of information about caddisfly behavior and identification.

Example specimens

Dirremeang
Koror, Palau

Posts: 3
Dirremeang on Dec 27, 2007December 27th, 2007, 5:16 pm EST
Hi, Everyone! I'm a student doing my field studies on aquatic insects! Any suggestions on how to start? There are lots of insects with a very hard pronounced names!
Taxon
Taxon's profile picture
Site Editor
Plano, TX

Posts: 1311
Taxon on Dec 27, 2007December 27th, 2007, 8:02 pm EST
Zilah-

Congratulations. You are embarking on what should be a very interesting and rewarding career.

In your profile, you indicate that you are doing a project on aquatic insects as environmental indicators. My first suggestion is that you cease worrying about the proper pronunciation of scientific names, as that is unlikely to be a key component of either your learning, or of your grade.

My second suggestion is that you have clearly written project expectations before starting any fieldwork. Getting a shared understanding of project expectations on the front end is the primary key to success of any project.

Once that is in place, I would recommend developing list of each individual task you will need to perform; establishing their dependencies upon one another; estimating the amount of time each will take to perform; developing a schedule for their performance.

Does any of this make sense to you?
Best regards,
Roger Rohrbeck
www.FlyfishingEntomology.com
Sajad
Posts: 1
Sajad on Mar 9, 2008March 9th, 2008, 5:54 pm EDT
Hello,i am also a research scholar working on indian trichoptera.if i can help you by any ways it will be my pleasure.
Taxon
Taxon's profile picture
Site Editor
Plano, TX

Posts: 1311
Taxon on Mar 9, 2008March 9th, 2008, 8:04 pm EDT
Sajad-

Sounds good. How many species of caddisflies do you have in India?
Best regards,
Roger Rohrbeck
www.FlyfishingEntomology.com

Quick Reply

Related Discussions

7
Apr 22, 2008
by LittleJ
3
May 8, 2010
by Canuck
7
Nov 4, 2017
by Btbo32
Troutnut.com is copyright © 2004-2023 (email Jason). privacy policy