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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.

Dorsal view of a Neoleptophlebia (Leptophlebiidae) Mayfly Nymph from the Yakima River in Washington
Some characteristics from the microscope images for the tentative species id: The postero-lateral projections are found only on segment 9, not segment 8. Based on the key in Jacobus et al. (2014), it appears to key to Neoleptophlebia adoptiva or Neoleptophlebia heteronea, same as this specimen with pretty different abdominal markings. However, distinguishing between those calls for comparing the lengths of the second and third segment of the labial palp, and this one (like the other one) only seems to have two segments. So I'm stuck on them both. It's likely that the fact that they're immature nymphs stymies identification in some important way.
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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Sayfu
Posts: 560
Sayfu on Aug 3, 2012August 3rd, 2012, 12:14 pm EDT

Forgot how to best use this thing. I haven't posted in sometime now. I just bought a new ID book by David Hughes. In it he says that ALL STONE FLIES crawl out to emerge. When you see what looks like stones emerging on the water's surface like I have seen yellow sallies I thought were emerging on the waters surface...NO, it is egg layers returning, that you did not see returning to the water. True, or False.
Taxon
Taxon's profile picture
Site Editor
Plano, TX

Posts: 1311
Taxon on Aug 3, 2012August 3rd, 2012, 12:53 pm EDT
Hi Sayfu,

Although I don't actually know if ALL stoneflies crawl out to emerge, certainly MOST of them do. However, there is/are usually exception(s) to any rule (perhaps even this one), so terms like (all, always, never, none) are best avoided.
Best regards,
Roger Rohrbeck
www.FlyfishingEntomology.com
Entoman
Entoman's profile picture
Northern CA & ID

Posts: 2604
Entoman on Aug 3, 2012August 3rd, 2012, 1:43 pm EDT
Hi Jere,

Good to hear from you! How's fishing been?

Taxon is absolutely right about absolutes.:) If that is what Dave Hughes wrote, I'm afraid I have to disagree. There is ample evidence that some perlodids (at least in the West) are capable of aquatic emergence. I'm on the road so my ability to search for you is limited, but I remember even Dave's co-author, entomologist Rick Hafele, has mentioned this phenomenon several times in his writings. Perhaps it just slipped through the editing process... Anyway, I also seem to remember we discussed this at length in another thread, so perhaps somebody can google it up and link it. I'd like to know what I said before I contradict myself...:)
"It's not that I find fishing so important, it's just that I find all other endeavors of Man equally unimportant... And not nearly as much fun!" Robert Traver, Anatomy of a Fisherman
Sayfu
Posts: 560
Sayfu on Aug 4, 2012August 4th, 2012, 8:27 am EDT

We did discuss it, and I was interested to know what you thought because Hughes was adamant about stones not emerging out on the water. Fishing has been very poor. I focused on a particular lake this Summer because of all the high water coming from the SF of the Snake due to irrigation needs. We had a drowning the other day...driftboat capsized with a man and his wife in the boat, and the wife drowned. I'm too old anymore to put up with the heat, and have to row in high water especially when we can get substantial winds. It will be a Fall fishery for me this year.
Entoman
Entoman's profile picture
Northern CA & ID

Posts: 2604
Entoman on Aug 5, 2012August 5th, 2012, 12:25 pm EDT
Yeah, I was in Idaho during the freak June storms that blew everything out, so I focused on lakes and spring creeks.
"It's not that I find fishing so important, it's just that I find all other endeavors of Man equally unimportant... And not nearly as much fun!" Robert Traver, Anatomy of a Fisherman

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