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.
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I was not fishing, but happened to be at an unrelated social event on a hill above this tiny creek (which I never even saw) when this stonefly flew by me. I assume it came from there. Some key characteristics are tricky to follow, but process of elimination ultimately led me to Sweltsa borealis. It is reassuringly similar to this specimen posted by Bob Newell years ago. It is also so strikingly similar to this nymph from the same river system that I'm comfortable identifying that nymph from this adult. I was especially pleased with the closeup photo of four mites parasitizing this one.
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This one was collected in in association with this male. It looks quite different, but that's often the case between spinner genders.
GONZO on Oct 28, 2008October 28th, 2008, 8:53 am EDT
This female has abdominal markings (spiracular dots and lines on posterior margins) and cross veins that are not crowded in the bulla region of the wing. This seems consistent with some M. modestum, and I'm pretty sure that this female is the same species as the male collected on the same day (#295).