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Lateral view of a Female Hexagenia limbata (Ephemeridae) (Hex) Mayfly Dun from the Namekagon River in Wisconsin
Hex Mayflies
Hexagenia limbata

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.

Lateral view of a Male Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #308 in Washington
This dun emerged from a mature nymph on my desk. Unfortunately its wings didn't perfectly dry out.
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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Dorsal view of a Isogenoides hansoni (Perlodidae) (Appalachian Springfly) Stonefly Nymph from Mongaup Creek in New York
This large Perlodidae stonefly was a strikingly bright yellow color, more so than any other insect I've seen. I didn't enhance it much. See the discussion threads to follow how we identified this specimen, which was listed incorrectly for several years.
GONZO
Site Editor
"Bear Swamp," PA

Posts: 1681
GONZO on Oct 3, 2010October 3rd, 2010, 8:37 am EDT
I believe that this is actually Isogenoides hansoni. When Dr. Chandler and Luke Myers made earlier "Cultus" comments on this specimen, they seem to have missed the prominent submental gills shown in photo #5 (and #7).

In addition to the submental gills (more than 2X as long as wide), the pale area on the 10th tergum, the distinct enclosed pale "M" mark on the head, and (often) the elongated pale spot in the center of the head are a few of the distinctive traits of this species. A complete description and a depiction of the dorsal habitus (figure #88) can be found in Sandberg and Stewart (Holomorphology and Systematics of the Stonefly Genus Isogeniodes, 2005).

The type specimens of I. hansoni were collected from my old homewaters on the Brodheads in 1937 by Preston Jennings (the author of the classic A Book of Trout Flies).

Cultus verticalis is a smaller, pale yellowish nymph, typically with a bolder, simpler dorsal pattern and less intricate markings on the dorsal surface of the head/thorax.

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