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.
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This is a striking caddis larva with an interesting color pattern on the head. Here are some characteristics I was able to see under the microscope, but could not easily expose for a picture:
- The prosternal horn is present.
- The mandible is clearly toothed, not formed into a uniform scraper blade.
- The seems to be only 2 major setae on the ventral edge of the hind femur.
- Chloride epithelia seem to be absent from the dorsal side of any abdominal segments.
Based on these characteristics and the ones more easily visible from the pictures, this seems to be Grammotaulius. The key's description of the case is spot-on: "Case cylindrical, made of longitudinally arranged sedge or similar leaves," as is the description of the markings on the head, "Dorsum of head light brownish yellow with numerous discrete, small, dark spots." The spot pattern on the head is a very good match to figure 19.312 of Merritt R.W., Cummins, K.W., and Berg, M.B. (2019). The species ID is based on Grammotaulius betteni being the only species of this genus known in Washington state.
- The prosternal horn is present.
- The mandible is clearly toothed, not formed into a uniform scraper blade.
- The seems to be only 2 major setae on the ventral edge of the hind femur.
- Chloride epithelia seem to be absent from the dorsal side of any abdominal segments.
Based on these characteristics and the ones more easily visible from the pictures, this seems to be Grammotaulius. The key's description of the case is spot-on: "Case cylindrical, made of longitudinally arranged sedge or similar leaves," as is the description of the markings on the head, "Dorsum of head light brownish yellow with numerous discrete, small, dark spots." The spot pattern on the head is a very good match to figure 19.312 of Merritt R.W., Cummins, K.W., and Berg, M.B. (2019). The species ID is based on Grammotaulius betteni being the only species of this genus known in Washington state.
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By Troutnut on September 18th, 2014
This was my first trip to "the bush" in my seven years in Alaska. I flew to the small Inupiaq eskimo village of Selawik, where I met some extremely friendly, knowledgable locals who took me 130 miles upriver by boat to the USWFS camp.
It was really interesting to see the mixture of ancient and modern lifestyles so far off the grid, in an environment that presents many of challenges besides distance, such as permafrost. The roads in the town are all boardwalks, and nobody drives highway vehicles, just ATVs. Nothing seems to get thrown away when it's so expensive to get new things shipped in--the place is full of old machines and other items to be used in industrious ways in the future.
It was really interesting to see the mixture of ancient and modern lifestyles so far off the grid, in an environment that presents many of challenges besides distance, such as permafrost. The roads in the town are all boardwalks, and nobody drives highway vehicles, just ATVs. Nothing seems to get thrown away when it's so expensive to get new things shipped in--the place is full of old machines and other items to be used in industrious ways in the future.
Photos by Troutnut from the Selawik River and the Kobuk River in Alaska
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