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.

Stream photos

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Onocosmoecus (Great Late-Summer Sedge) Caddisfly Larva Onocosmoecus (Great Late-Summer Sedge) Caddisfly Larva

Lateral view of a Onocosmoecus (Limnephilidae) (Great Late-Summer Sedge) Caddisfly Larva from the Yakima River in Washington

This specimen keys pretty easily to Onocosmoecus, and it closely resembles a specimen from Alaska which caddis expert Dave Ruiter recognized as this genus. As with that specimen, the only species in the genus documented in this area is Onocosmoecus unicolor, but Dave suggested for that specimen that there might be multiple not-yet-distinguished species under the unicolor umbrella and it would be best to stick with the genus-level ID. I'm doing the same for this one.

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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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Stonefly?

Pdcox has attached these 2 pictures to aid in identification. The message is below.

Pdcox
Kansas city

Posts: 12

Pdcox on Oct 30, 2019October 30th, 2019, 4:07 am EDT

Hi, just a rookie here. Found this bug in a mountain freestone stream central Colorado. Curious about the fed/orange bands around body. Any help in ID?
Thanks

Creno
Grants Pass, OR

Posts: 302

Creno on Oct 30, 2019October 30th, 2019, 6:29 am EDT

the red spots look like mites. Fairly common on aquatic insects

Taxon

Site Editor
Plano, TX

Posts: 1311

Taxon on Oct 30, 2019October 30th, 2019, 7:39 am EDT

Hi Paul-

I believe the stonefly nymph you found in a central Colorado stream to be of family Perlodidae. With regard to what you describe as the orange bands, I suspect that to be a parasitic infestation of orange-colored water mites.

Best regards,
Roger Rohrbeck
www.FlyfishingEntomology.com

Pdcox
Kansas city

Posts: 12

Pdcox on Oct 30, 2019October 30th, 2019, 9:26 am EDT

thank you

Pdcox
Kansas city

Posts: 12

Pdcox on Oct 30, 2019October 30th, 2019, 9:27 am EDT

thanks

Martinlf

Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047

Martinlf on Nov 19, 2019November 19th, 2019, 1:55 pm EST

I suspect that to be a parasitic infestation of orange-colored water mites.

Yikes!!

Hey Roger, how the heck are you? Well, I hope.

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

--Fred Chappell

Jmd123

Oscoda, MI

Posts: 2474

Jmd123 on Nov 20, 2019November 20th, 2019, 6:09 am EST

I can see 'em...would you all believe I have seen the red mites on water scorpions? As in Ranatra fusca, which looks for all the world like an aquatic preying mantis...

Jonathon

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

Martinlf

Moderator
Palmyra PA

Posts: 3047

Martinlf on Nov 20, 2019November 20th, 2019, 4:33 pm EST

Had to look that one up. Cool.

https://www.psychoticnature.com/photo/2667-brown_waterscorpion-ranatra_fusca

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

--Fred Chappell

Taxon

Site Editor
Plano, TX

Posts: 1311

Taxon on Dec 5, 2019December 5th, 2019, 6:57 am EST