After years of research ....

[trythisonemv]

So I finally figured out what the large dobsonesque /stoneflyesque creature flying around crane creek is. They are called fish fly. Dark fish fly to be precise. They are in same family as Dobson flies. Didn't even know we had these in Missouri. They are very similar to dobson fly. The difference and the reason I started to question what i have been seeing is tye whiteish yellow spots on the wings and smaller pinchers. They have larvae similar to hellgramite and can easily be confused. 

[trythisonemv]

[Dutch]

Are they only in the Crane Creek area?  I have a farm by Spring Creek through which Bland Spring flows.  I have never seen any of those critters.

[trythisonemv]

32 minutes ago, Dutch said:

Are they only in the Crane Creek area?  I have a farm by Spring Creek through which Bland Spring flows.  I have never seen any of those critters.

32 minutes ago, Dutch said:

Are they only in the Crane Creek area?  I have a farm by Spring Creek through which Bland Spring flows.  I have never seen any of those critters.

Yeah they don't belong here they are common in Michigan and northern places. Only place I have ever seen them

[dpitt]

My son his getting his PHD in entomology at Colorado State Univ.    He said hellgrammitte nymph/larvae patterns are similar  to fish(dobson) flies.  But he said tie them a bit smaller.   Here's a cool hellgrammite pattern.  Here's info about the fish fly from MDC. https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/fishfly-larvae

 

[fishinwrench]

I quit tying Hellgrammite patterns after being turned onto Case Plastics "Lil' Helgie".     

And yeah, it casts like a dream on a 6-7wt.   

[trythisonemv]

11 hours ago, dpitt said:

My son his getting his PHD in entomology at Colorado State Univ.    He said hellgrammitte nymph/larvae patterns are similar  to fish(dobson) flies.  But he said tie them a bit smaller.   Here's a cool hellgrammite pattern.  Here's info about the fish fly from MDC. https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/fishfly-larvae

 

So a hellgramite is the larvae of a Dobson fly not a fish fly. They are two different species . I looked into this in depth. The fish fly is smaller and haa smaller pincers. The mdc website only discusses a tan brown colored fish fly the ones at crane are black and are called dark fish fly. 

[dpitt]

Yes you are correct he was just thinking using a smaller hellgrammite pattern as a being a representative pattern to tie

[tjm]

Nigronia serricornis or Nigronia fasciatus ? Did you examine the antennae to determine if male or female? 

It is common, I think to call the larvae  of Dobson flies and fish flies all hellgrammites. I also think the fish flies are more widespread than you think throughout the interior highlands, I believe I read some research about five species of them in the Ozark region.

In this report N. serricornis is found on Little Piney Creek. https://midmissouri.tu.org/sites/default/files/Little Piney Report_062107-144dpi.pdf

[FishnDave]

From the MDC website: