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Lateral view of a Male Baetis (Baetidae) (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #43 in New York
Blue-winged Olives
Baetis

Tiny Baetis mayflies are perhaps the most commonly encountered and imitated by anglers on all American trout streams due to their great abundance, widespread distribution, and trout-friendly emergence habits.

We were lucky to be able to fish through this storm as it skirted around us to the north, giving us just enough clouds to prompt a BWO hatch but keeping the lighting at a safe distance. From Slough Creek in Wyoming

Stream photos

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Pycnopsyche guttifera (Great Autumn Brown Sedge) Caddisfly LarvaPycnopsyche guttifera (Great Autumn Brown Sedge) Caddisfly Larva
Dorsal view of a Pycnopsyche guttifera (Limnephilidae) (Great Autumn Brown Sedge) Caddisfly Larva from the Yakima River in Washington
This specimen appears to be of the same species as this one collected in the same spot two months earlier. The identification of both is tentative. This one suffered some physical damage before being photographed, too, so the colors aren't totally natural. I was mostly photographing it to test out some new camera setting idea, which worked really well for a couple of closeups.
10 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.

  1. Trout Streams
    2. ›
  2. New York
    3. ›
  3. The West Branch of Owego Creek

  1. Trout Streams
    2. ›
  2. New York
    3. ›
  3. The West Branch of Owego Creek

Landscape & scenery photos from the West Branch of Owego Creek

The NY DEC has installed these trout habitat improvements on a small upstate stream. I found that most fish in the stream orient to them. From the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
The NY DEC has installed these trout habitat improvements on a small upstate stream. I found that most fish in the stream orient to them. From the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
The NY DEC has installed these trout habitat improvements on a small upstate stream. I found that most fish in the stream orient to them. From the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
The West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
The West Branch of Owego Creek in New York

Underwater photos from the West Branch of Owego Creek

The West Branch of Owego Creek in New York

On-stream insect photos from the West Branch of Owego Creek

Closeup of some recently emerged Isonychia bicolor nymphs from a small stream. From the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
Several Isonychia bicolor nymphs had recently crawled out onto these rocks to emerge, leaving behind their telltale shucks. From the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York

Closeup insects by Troutnut from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York

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Belostoma flumineum (Electric Light Bug) Giant Water Bug Adult
Giant water bug. This dangerous aquatic predator belongs to the species Belostoma flumineum, in a family known as the "toebiters" Artistic view of a Belostoma flumineum (Belostomatidae) (Electric Light Bug) Giant Water Bug Adult from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
I'm glad I finally got one of these Belostoma water bugs under my good camera. I had been hoping to get one in my kick-net samples for a while with no luck, but I ended up finding this one drifting midstream just below the surface while I fished. I have frequently seen water scorpions do that, too, and I'm beginning to suspect that is a common situation travel for these large Hemiptera bugs, and perhaps the way trout are used to seeing them.
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Male Isonychia bicolor (Mahogany Dun) Mayfly Spinner
Male Isonychia bicolor (Isonychiidae) (Mahogany Dun) Mayfly Spinner from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
I got several really nice pictures of this spinner. I also collected a female on the same trip.
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Male Mystacides sepulchralis (Black Dancer) Caddisfly Adult
Male Mystacides sepulchralis (Leptoceridae) (Black Dancer) Caddisfly Adult from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
This was one of many of its species which were gathered in small, low-flying swarms of about a dozen insects near the alder trees in the afternoon on a small stream.
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Female Isonychia bicolor (Mahogany Dun) Mayfly Spinner
Lateral view of a Female Isonychia bicolor (Isonychiidae) (Mahogany Dun) Mayfly Spinner from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
I collected this female together with a male.
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Female Stenacron interpunctatum (Light Cahill) Mayfly Dun
Lateral view of a Female Stenacron interpunctatum (Heptageniidae) (Light Cahill) Mayfly Dun from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
This is a fairly small late-season female Stenacron dun.
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Female Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Spinner
Lateral view of a Female Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Spinner from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
This species is probably in Centroptilum, Cloeon, or Procloeon. I captured this spinner on the same night as a dun which is probably of the same species.
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Female Isonychia bicolor (Mahogany Dun) Mayfly Dun
Lateral view of a Female Isonychia bicolor (Isonychiidae) (Mahogany Dun) Mayfly Dun from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
This is a naturally crippled female Isonychia bicolor dun. One of her main wings came out as a deformed, crumpled yellow object. I found her flopped over on her side struggling on the surface of a small stream.
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Female Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Dun
Lateral view of a Female Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Dun from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
I captured this dun on the same night as a spinner which is probably of the same species.
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Female Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Spinner
Lateral view of a Female Baetidae (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Spinner from the West Branch of Owego Creek in New York
This is one of the smallest mayflies I've ever collected, about 3mm long.
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