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.

Two major forks of this grayling stream come together in this pretty pool.

From the Chena River in Alaska

Stream photos

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Setvena wahkeena (Wahkeena Springfly) Stonefly Nymph Setvena wahkeena (Wahkeena Springfly) Stonefly Nymph

Dorsal view of a Setvena wahkeena (Perlodidae) (Wahkeena Springfly) Stonefly Nymph from Mystery Creek #199 in Washington

As far as I can tell, this species has only previously been reported from one site in Oregon along the Columbia gorge. However, the key characteristics are fairly unmistakable in all except for one minor detail:
— 4 small yellow spots on frons visible in photos
— Narrow occipital spinule row curves forward (but doesn’t quite meet on stem of ecdysial suture, as it's supposed to in this species)
— Short spinules on anterior margin of front legs
— Short rposterior row of blunt spinules on abdominal tergae, rather than elongated spinules dorsally
I caught several of these mature nymphs in the fishless, tiny headwaters of a creek high in the Wenatchee Mountains.

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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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Small BWO

Lastchance
Portage, PA

Posts: 437

Lastchance on Aug 30, 2010August 30th, 2010, 11:41 am EDT

Are these tiny BWOs that are coming off now and through the Fall a size 24? Also, can someone direct me to some photos of them? I saw one Saturday, which I thought was a Blue Quill Spinner, but now I think it was a BWO spinner. It had a dark thorax, a clear translucent body and another dark segment at the end.
Thanks,
Bruce

GONZO
Site Editor
"Bear Swamp," PA

Posts: 1681

GONZO on Aug 30, 2010August 30th, 2010, 12:48 pm EDT

Bruce,

The spinner you saw was probably a male. A #24 seems a little too small for most Blue Quills (Paraleptophlebia), though many of the males have the "Jenny Spinner" coloration that you describe. (Blue Quill spinners have three tails.) That coloration is also common to many male baetids (two-tailed BWOs, if you will). The females will usually have a (mostly) solid color body that will range from olive to brown to light orange. Here are some photos of a few baetids that show the "Jenny Spinner" coloration in the males:

http://bugguide.net/node/view/249088/bgimage
http://bugguide.net/node/view/249089/bgimage
http://bugguide.net/node/view/249110/bgimage

For contrast, here is the female of the first species:

http://bugguide.net/node/view/249090/bgimage

I hope that helps, at least a little.

Lastchance
Portage, PA

Posts: 437

Lastchance on Aug 30, 2010August 30th, 2010, 3:30 pm EDT

Hi Gonzo: That's exactly what I saw on Saturday. So the the onlyu difference between those BWOs and Blue Quill spinners is basically the number of tails? Like many others in my beginning years of bug watching I always mistook Blue Quills for Tricos.
Thanks,
Bruce