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3. trico broods

from what i can gather, there are several trico broods per "season". help me out here bug geeks/science guys. my experience with this hatch tells me that there is a "break in the action" after a few weeks into it and then it slowly picks back up. the reason that i am asking is that
1- i don't know
2- there is a lull right now on my favorite trico water. i hit it good a week ago and i have heard that there are a few bugs but no surface activity
3- i don't have as much time anymore to drive 3 hours and see

so...
about how long does it take for the bugs to "ramp it up" again?
tony

Tony, I think that your personal experience is probably the most useful thing when it comes to predicting the local pattern of emergence in practical ways.

PA seems to have 3 recorded species of trico--T. stygiatus, T. allectus, and T. explicatus (formerly T. minutus, in part). Although the general emergence period might be broadly similar, the incidence of multiple broods and/or extended emergence periods can vary according to species, temperature/latitude, and stream character. Generally (in North America), the incidence of multi-brooding tends to increase as one moves south through the range of a given species, sometimes becoming a year-round asynchronous emergence for some wide-ranging species in the southern part of their range.

Whether the lulls you are seeing are related to differences in the emergence time of different species, different broods of the same species, or just the ebb and flow of an extended asynchronous emergence would be very difficult to determine without careful study of specific (local) populations.

All of this is by way of saying that I'm sorry that I can't help you with this, and that your guess is probably better than mine. ;)

Tony, I did a little checking and came upon this 1998 study of T. stygiatus in the Little Lehigh:
http://famu.org/mayfly/pubs/pub_g/pubgoughf1998p129.pdf
It concludes that stygiatus is univoltine in that stream.

Chandler et al. (2006) suggests that T. cobbi and T. mosegus are probably univoltine in New Hampshire, with an extended emergence from June to September and July to October, respectively.

For people that speak everyday fishing language like "I ain't ketchin' no fish" univoltine means one life cycle or trico hatch per year in the Lehigh. Bivoltine would, of course, mean two hatches per year. Gees, Gonzo, cut me a break. I ain't that smurt. Ha! Ha!
Bruce

Bruce...Don't be so hard on yourself...You appear to be keeping up pretty good there...Now Ovaltine...I can't remember...Is that something I put in my milk or does it mean year "round"?

Spence the Confused

Hey Oldredbarn: I had to look up that stuff. I'm not stupid, but I'm not a biology major either.
Why does ovaltine come in a round jar?
Do you remember when they produced that opeltine car?

Speaking of tricos, I spent 2 days fishing over a very sparse fall. I did great on Friday fishing trico nymphs, but that's not why I signed on for the mission. I tied a bunch of trico spinners and adults in various styles and I have yet to be able to use them. I've been out 5 times and I keep missing the spinners.

Bruce

Hey Bruce: Sorry about that! I'm not a biology major either, I just adopt the lingo when I want to sound like I know what I'm talking about. Besides, now you know some nifty new words. :)

BTW, Ovaltine comes in round jars because oval lids are difficult to unscrew. (OK, that's just my personal theory. I can't provide a citation to support it.)

Please tell me no one else is reading this! I just finished watching Big Bang Theory and I'm not sure why we all aren't guest stars on that show! My wife already calls me her Nerder Birder...Please don't tell me I actually understand what a "pelagic bird" is???

We need help!

On a somewhat serious note...Well it's more like the last of the Labatt's from mom's 75th birthday party last Saturday logic...What if it took a bug exactly 365 days to "hatch", we know this isn't true, but follow me here a moment...So as the hatch progresses we have great weather for the first three days...The egg laying goes off without a hitch...Then the weather absolutely sours for a few days, windy, unseasonably cold, and heavy, heavy rain...Wouldn't this create a "gap" or "lull" in the hatch the following year? Could it?

It's time for bed...It is nigh on impossible to predict when there may or may not be a lull in hatch activity, I would think, from one year to the next. From one day to the next.

My regular week up north in May has been unseasonably warm for two years in a row before this season. I have had it snow on me in the past. Everyone spoke of the hatches being early this year...I had 90 degree days! Did the weather of the last two years have a noticible effect or was the fact that this year was warmer...(?)

Spence

Gonzo: No worry. Just having some fun. I always appreciate your expertise and everyone that chimes in on this site.
You're right about the oval lids.

Spence: Good points about the weather, too. I'm just disappointed, I guess. I've have all of these award winning trico patterns tied that may never get wet.

Bruce

Bruce,

As I've said it's been awhile since I was able to get out and fish the Trico hatch, but what I think you are hinting at a bit, I have noticed about Tricos as well...Once the hatch has stopped for the day its stopped. It's like someone threw a switch and it's over.

Sometimes when I go fishing and there is nothing going on I may tie on something I know has been around, or I expect to see later in the day, and try and "pound-up" fish with it. I have never had any success with this method with Tricos.

Here in Michigan I have had better luck, post the morning hatch, fishing a D lata when they are around or a terrestrial like an ant or beetle...Go figure? You would think that they are used to seeing them and would pop one if properly presented and I just haven't had any luck with this.

Spence

bruce
from what i gather from your reports-
you fished swarms with lots of bugs but no risers and later found out there were no fish in that area
then you fished an area with lots of fish present but few bugs for them to eat.
bad luck?
hey - we gotta fish together! you could straighten me out!
i spend more time each year tying tricos than anything else. a bad thing when basically any well presented fly (of the right "stage") will usually work.
when i had a good hatch and rising fish 10 days ago - after i caught a few decent fish and a few small ones, i saw a monster (relative to this stream - 19-20 inches) sipping spinners and i ignored all of the rest of the rising fish!
i changed flies 8 times when i probably should have slowly waded out and presented from upstream or cast to the other dozen fish rising in this pool. but no... i put on my tunnelvision sunglasses.
it got so bad that i was mad when i caught 2 fish that were rising below the 20 incher because i was letting the fly drift past before i picked up to cast again.
my experience (and from what i gather on this thread) tells me that next week ought to start being pretty good and the week after really good. just be sure to be there at the right time. the hatch has been occuring BEFORE dawn with rising fish to female duns and emergers in the dark (515) the spinner fall has started around 7-730. much earlier than recent years (weather related?)
i spoke with other fishermen in the area who told me that there were no tricos. i DIDN'T tell them to get there early (and i mean EARLY!)i'm impressed with the info in this discussion - especially gonzo's stuff.
after all, i've been drinking my chocolate milk squirted from a container kept in the fridge for several years now and i realize that i don't have to anymore...
tony

Hi Tony. Do you think the spinner fall was early because of the extremely hot nighttime temperatures? I've always fished nymphs at first light for an hour or so until the spinners fall. I'm ready to give it another try.
Bruce

PS. I walked about a mile of stream on Friday and then again n Saturday with a buddy. There were tricos, but they were very sparse. We were on the water at 6 AM on Saturday.

Tony & Bruce,

I'm going to let you two bang your heads together this year on some stream in PA...but..."irgendwann im naechsten Jahr" here in Michigan you two should jump in Tony's truck and head on up...(That's sometime next year for you french among us :))

Ok...you will have to pick...Do you want to fish, Hennys, sulphers, Brown Drakes...THE HEX, or those little tiny white-winged-blacks??? You already told me how many flies you two have betwen you...I guess I won't need to tie anything up then...Right:)?

I'll bring the beer...My wife Lisa's Kartoffelsalat (potato salad frenchies), though she's Italian, is better than my kraut mother's and worth the drive up here alone.

Spence

bruce
i absolutely am convinced that the weather has had an influence on the emergence schedule for the tricos - and for other hatches this year as well.
for example, when i fished paralepts this spring i fished alone at 730am through the best hatch i have seen in years. i usually hit the stream early to midge fish until the "bluequills" start to come off around 10 (when everybody else shows up to the dry fly pools).
my best subvaria fishing this year was at 930 - again i fished the emergence alone.
i was able to figure out that the rising fish at dusk and into the night were taking invaria emergers and duns instead of spinners because there were no spinners that "early".
yeah, the weather has "screwed up" the typical schedules for me, but i love it. when i figure out this stuff and actually catch fish, it gives me satisfaction and a feeling of accomplishment.
but it's not without trial and error. i fished the sulphur spinner patterns for two nights blaming my casting and drifts and my pattern until i actually grabbed a "spinner" from the water on the second night to get a better size reference and then realised it was a fresh dun. duh! instant success when i changed to a pattern with upright instead of spent wings.
could the tricos be a night time hatch this year or in those to come? i'll have to discuss it with night time hex guys (spence and jonathon) for some tips - but it has to be in ENGLISH 'cause i don't understand and can't even pronounce any of those sissy french or german phrases!!
ha!
tony

I think a great deal of bug activity happens after dark all year round. The old school "dry-fly" guys miss it for the most part because they still labor under old-school rules...Get up at a nice respectable time in the morning, put on the tweed jacket and head off for a bisquit and some Earl Grey...Once the mist has left the water switch to the Barbour jacket and head on out...At the access site put on their waders and unfurl the $2,500 Bob Summers cane rods and string them up and hang around the access site with other like minded old-schoolers and admirer each others outfits and equipment even though everyone here looks exactly the same...By the time these chaps make it to the stream Spence has had a wonderful morning alone (as you have discovered) and Spence is chewing on his bagel & cream cheese that Mrs Gates' girls put together for him back at the Lodge and all is right with the world...I think I'll head back to the car for a little nap and leave these fellas be...Too bad they missed everything, eh!

Spence passes them on the trail to the stream..."Good morning gentlemen! Tight lines!...Nice rods you have there...They hardly look used at all...You must care for them very well..." "You coming from the river there Spence?"..."Oh yeah...Thought I'd get up early and beat the rush...I guess I should of just stayed in bed this morning or met you guys for breakfast...Nothing really going on down there...Like I said...Tight Lines!"

Spence talks way too damn much!!! Someone ought to put a rag in his mouth and once some of his other comrades from the old mighty Au Sable bump in to his drivel here on this site he's screwed! They are going to drag him in to the swamp for a good thumping! And he will deserve every bit of it!!!

I think his response to you Tony simply should of been, "There's no one in here,after dark, but us meeces!"

Spence

Hey Spence: Who knows what next year will bring. Be very careful with those invitations. I may just take you up on that offer.
Bruce

Just a little something to add. I check spiderwebs on trees and bridges very early to see if the trico hatch has happened yet. If I don't see much, chances are, it hasn't. In general, I think they probably prefer night/wee early morning, regardless of daytime temps.

Luke,

Where you been hiding man?! I thought you were kidnapped or disappeared somewhere in to some jungle growth in Borneo or something!

Now if we can find out who's holding Roger for ransom we can re-establish our wonderful "Bug Boys" trifecta! Oh happy day!

Welcome back...none-the-less!

Spence

No, no, no! Not trifecta, triumvirate is a better word! You all remember the KGB? We have the KGT! Konchu, Gonzo, Taxon...In may soon be safe again to actually utter the words Plauditus punctiventris in mixed company! I have goose bumps...Is that a tear of happiness I see there mister?

You know Bruce I have been knocking around an idea here since you brought this up...I was thinking about planning a trip out west next year and I already have my week at Gates's in May booked, but...Last Opening Day I spent a nice weekend with some guys from the Michigan Fly Fishing Club at a place called the Rayburn Lodge. It's a wonderful huge old log lodge that once was the guest house of the Rayburn Estate...It's on the famous "Holy Water" of the Au Sable...We had a local couple come in and make us breakfast each day and for the rest of the day we were on our own...

google Rayburn Lodge Grayling and take a picture tour.

Do you think that the "Pennsylvania Boys" would be up for a road trip? Something along the lines of your soiree earlier this year? We could hold a raffle with the grand prices being an afternoon/evening of fishing in front of Lively's old place or in front of the Barbless Hook where TU was founded??? Maybe a Trico trip up to the North Branch where Ford & Edison use to fish...

I do have a small problem here at this point...One of my German exchange students visited with us in June and he's getting married next year...At this point it may actually be during my planned trip to the Au Sable in May, but he hasn't given me a solid date as yet...We went to his brothers wedding in 2006 in Berlin and I would feel bad if I blew his big day off.

Grayling may never be the same after an invasion from PA, but what the hell! We would have to let the local bars & party stores know we were coming since we would want to give them a heads up on how much beer to lay in before we got there...What's that rot-gut you guys drink from Pittsburgh I think it is?

Just a thought here...I'm not sure how many we could handle at the lodge, but I think we had 18-20 this last Opening Day...Maybe 2012 sometime?

Spence

In my experience it is important to let the spinners hit the water. If they are in the air you're early. Find a log and wait.