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.
This one seems to lead to Couplet 35 of the Key to Genera of Perlodidae Nymphs and the genus Isoperla, but I'm skeptical that's correct based on the general look. I need to get it under the microscope to review several choices in the key, and it'll probably end up a different Perlodidae.
Creno on Jan 15, 2008January 15th, 2008, 12:36 pm EST
Len
Wonderful pictures! Is this really a natural spring that was piped for something long ago and is sort of restoring itself? If so natural springs like this are one of the neatest types of habitat with a tremendous amount of the most threatened native species. Is it currently relatively protected from future surface disturbance?
My avocation is primarily the caddis that inhabit such areas. Many of these areas are not marked on maps and have never been sampled to see what may be there. In the arid west we are still finding many new species at sites like this - although they are seldom this pretty.
For those of you wandering fisher persons who come across these in your other pursuits I would love to know where they are in case I get in the area to while collecting caddis sometime. Or if any of you have easy access to something like this and are interesting in collecting please contact me off line.
LenH on Feb 1, 2008February 1st, 2008, 6:25 am EST
Creno
I write a monthly Column for Midwest Outdoors Magazine. I would like to hear more about the springs? Do they have a name so I can research it for a story?