Mayflies hatching in Taney

[Phil Lilley]

Have had lots of conversations with then MO Fisheries Biologist Mike Kruse on the issue of Mayflies on Taneycomo. He says they don't and I've seen them... now I have proof and a witness.

Can anyone identify it? They were all over the lake in front of our place this evening. Jeremy Hunt boated by and picked up one too. They were almost as thick as the midges. Cool!

[Bill Babler]

Anything munching on them?

[Phil Lilley]

Oh yea- they were. Big munch.

[Andrew Schaefer]

What size were they Phil? It looks like a spinner(mating) stage mayfly. One time about five years ago I found a spent trico spinner floating by your dock in august, I scooped it up and had it in my collection for school for a awhile, I forget what happened to it. I wish taneycomo had some good mayfly hatches, but such is life.

I'm not much of a bug expert, i usually just use common names and go mostly by size and color, I honestly have no Idea what this is, I'd have to key it out to tell. The dunns are easier for me to id than the spinners because the spinners of many mayflies look very similar. There are a lot of mayflies that hatch in the spring time and they all look pretty much the same to me: blue wing olives, mahogany duns, march browns, hendricksons etc.

[Phil Lilley]

Bodies were about an inch.

[Guest flyfishBDS]

Yep its a mayfly Phil

If they were floating with upright wings like that I'd say a dun. Duns moult to become spinners (true adults) on land, then you'll see them in mating clouds, getting lower and lower then youll see them dapping the water laying eggs then die. Spinners on the water are usually spent, dead.

I'm not very entomological, in Oz they are red black big and little LOL. But it looks very similar to ones we have been spotting lower down in the tailwater here. Though perhaps a little darker in your version, looks a little more brown than the grey hue we are getting.

You could try emailing/posting the photo to Troutnut.com.

I wish Jason would put up a search engine to whip through key identifiers, size color, tail filaments etc etc

I was trying to identify some HUGE nymphs in the creek behind the store and its pretty tough searching those pages, when you don't have a clue LOl

What time of day were they coming off Phil, and where the duns popping at your place or just floating downstream. Sounds like a good one to fish. Cheers

Steve

[Phil Lilley]

Sounds like you've got it.

They were popping out here- really up and down the lake. I've seen them before but not in those numbers. It was just before dark last night.

[fishinwrench]

Here ya go....maybe

speckled wing quill

[motroutbum]

its either a baetis or a callibaetis. and deffinitely a spinner. To tell the difference between a spinner and a dun, you look at the wings, if they are clear then they are spinners. As for the speckled wing quill, or the march brown, or the hendrickson, you have to look at the ranges of the insects. You cant just make your assumption on color or hues. The type or water we have at taney just like anyother tailwater suggests that it is a baetis species. Callibaetis are usually found in lakes, and the baetis in rivers. The most common species of mayfly in tailwaters are baetis.

[Guest flyfishBDS]

I emailed Jason at Troutnut, deferring to his vastly greater knowledge, than my obviously inferior one.

His view was it ""in the Heptageniidae family, but beyond that I couldn't tell you.""

http://www.troutnut.com/hatch/39/Mayfly-He...s-Quill-Gordons

The clear wings was a new one on me, and certainly appears to be right for some speciesincluding baetis though interestingly not for the Callibaetis.

Anyway I never worry about names _ just how they look as Ive got some spent spinner and emerger patterns which will work very nicely. Wonder if I can make it across tonite on my way to Bull.

Cheers

Steve