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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.

Case view of a Pycnopsyche guttifera (Limnephilidae) (Great Autumn Brown Sedge) Caddisfly Larva from the Yakima River in Washington
It's only barely visible in one of my pictures, but I confirmed under the microscope that this one has a prosternal horn and the antennae are mid-way between the eyes and front of the head capsule.

I'm calling this one Pycnopsyche, but it's a bit perplexing. It seems to key definitively to at least Couplet 8 of the Key to Genera of Limnephilidae Larvae. That narrows it down to three genera, and the case seems wrong for the other two. The case looks right for Pycnopsyche, and it fits one of the key characteristics: "Abdominal sternum II without chloride epithelium and abdominal segment IX with only single seta on each side of dorsal sclerite." However, the characteristic "metanotal sa1 sclerites not fused, although often contiguous" does not seem to fit well. Those sclerites sure look fused to me, although I can make out a thin groove in the touching halves in the anterior half under the microscope. Perhaps this is a regional variation.

The only species of Pycnopsyche documented in Washington state is Pycnopsyche guttifera, and the colors and markings around the head of this specimen seem to match very well a specimen of that species from Massachusetts on Bugguide. So I am placing it in that species for now.

Whatever species this is, I photographed another specimen of seemingly the same species from the same spot a couple months later.
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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Photos by Troutnut from the South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington

The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
The South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington

Closeup insects by Troutnut from the South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington

Lateral view of a Female Ephemerellidae (Hendricksons, Sulphurs, PMDs, BWOs) Mayfly Dun from the South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
This one was collected in association with a male spinner, but they appear to be different families.
Lateral view of a Male Cinygmula (Heptageniidae) (Dark Red Quill) Mayfly Spinner from the South Fork Stillaguamish River in Washington
I'm unsure of the ID on this one; keys put it closest to Cinygmula reticulata, but I'm very doubtful of the species and not positive on the genus. Epeorus is another possibility, but I don't know which species it would be.

This one was collected in association with a female dun probably of a different family.

Comments / replies

Martinlf
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Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047
Martinlf on Jul 2, 2017July 2nd, 2017, 12:25 pm EDT
Beautiful photos, Jason.
"He spread them a yard and a half. 'And every one that got away is this big.'"

--Fred Chappell
Jmd123
Jmd123's profile picture
Oscoda, MI

Posts: 2474
Jmd123 on Jul 2, 2017July 2nd, 2017, 12:31 pm EDT
Gorgeous! Reminds me of Oregon, including the heavily-spotted rainbows in the McKenzie River. Looks like some nice bigleaf maples in the background on the last photo. Gotta get back to that part of the world again sometime...

Jonathon
No matter how big the one you just caught is, there's always a bigger one out there somewhere...

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