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.

Cedar sweepers line the fertile spring creek headwaters of a famous trout stream.

From the Bois Brule River in Wisconsin

Stream photos

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Ephemerella mucronata Mayfly Nymph Ephemerella mucronata Mayfly Nymph

Dorsal view of a Ephemerella mucronata (Ephemerellidae) Mayfly Nymph from the Yakima River in Washington

This is an interesting one. Following the keys in Merritt R.W., Cummins, K.W., and Berg, M.B. (2019) and Jacobus et al. (2014), it keys clearly to Ephemerella. Jacobus et al provide a key to species, but some of the characteristics are tricky to interpret without illustrations. If I didn't make any mistakes, this one keys to Ephemerella mucronata, which has not previously been reported any closer to here than Montana and Alberta. The main character seems to fit well: "Abdominal terga with prominent, paired, subparallel, spiculate ridges." Several illustrations or descriptions of this holarctic species from the US and Europe seem to match, including the body length, tarsal claws and denticles, labial palp, and gill shapes. These sources include including Richard Allen's original description of this species in North America under the now-defunct name E. moffatae in Allen RK (1977) and the figures in this description of the species in Italy.

17 Recently Added Photos

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.

Troutnut is a project started in 2003 by salmonid ecologist Jason "Troutnut" Neuswanger to help anglers and fly tyers unabashedly embrace the entomological side of the sport. Learn more about Troutnut or support the project for an enhanced experience here.

Shawn's Cicada Ties

Shawnny3 has attached these 3 pictures. The message is below.

Shawnny3
Moderator
Pleasant Gap, PA

Posts: 1197

Shawnny3 on May 8, 2007May 8th, 2007, 3:42 pm EDT

Here are a few pics of my cicada ties I discuss in http://www.troutnut.com/topic/688. I am embarrassed to share pictures of such (poor) quality on this venerable site, but this is the best I can do without my wife's help. Ugly pics of ugly flies, I guess - these flies aren't meant to be pretty. The body of each runs about 1-1/2" long.

-Shawn

Jewelry-Quality Artistic Salmon Flies, by Shawn Davis
www.davisflydesigns.com

Troutnut

Administrator
Bellevue, WA

Posts: 2758

Troutnut on May 18, 2007May 18th, 2007, 5:37 pm EDT

Those look good! Very generally "buggy," plus you nailed the bulky size and shape of the cicada and the segmented look of the abdomen.

Jason Neuswanger, Ph.D.
Troutnut and salmonid ecologist

RleeP
NW PA - Pennsylvania's Glacial Pothole Wonderland

Posts: 398

RleeP on May 19, 2007May 19th, 2007, 1:25 am EDT

Shawn:

Excellent!

I'll give them a whirl.

Lee

Shawnny3
Moderator
Pleasant Gap, PA

Posts: 1197

Shawnny3 on May 19, 2007May 19th, 2007, 1:38 am EDT

Thanks, guys. I see Jason's cicada pics on this site show a bug that's more black and yellow, not so orangish. My guess is that different broods are slightly different colors. Since the hatch comes and goes so quickly (and doesn't repeat itself again for awhile!) it makes sense to try to be prepared ahead of time. But I'm not sure how you'd get a picture or a natural from your locale ahead of time, unless some old-timer has one from the last time they were around.

Best of luck, RleeP. Hope you get to fish the hatch of a lifetime - I wish I had.

-Shawn

P.S. By the way, Jason, the second fly is one I was fooling around with that time we went bass fishing and you were doing well on the DD. I had caught a few bass on it before, and what else am I going to do with them now? Not so great that day, though...

Jewelry-Quality Artistic Salmon Flies, by Shawn Davis
www.davisflydesigns.com

Martinlf

Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047

Martinlf on May 19, 2007May 19th, 2007, 1:42 am EDT

They look excellent to me as well. I believe the 17 year locust is generally more red or orange, while the annual locusts around here have green backs and grey bellies. Fly Fisherman had an article on cicadas with pattern (when the 17 year locusts were hatching a few years back) that I believe was called the mondo backing cicada.

"He spread them a yard and a half. 'And every one that got away is this big.'"

--Fred Chappell